Centre responsible for oxygen mess: Former Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan

Prithviraj Chavan. File Pic

Former chief minister of Maharashtra Prithviraj Chavan has held the central government responsible for the oxygen crisis in the country. He said on Wednesday that the Centre miserably failed to act in time to ensure adequate supply of oxygen.

"On October 20, 2020, the Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, had said there was no shortage of Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO) in the country and outlined various steps to enhance LMO supply. He said the government was proactively planning to install PSA oxygen generating plants in 390 hospitals across the country and that the government had initiated import of one lakh metric tonnes of LMO to address anticipated surge in COVID-19 cases."

He asked the Centre on what basis did the union ministry assume that we were in an extremely comfortable position in terms of LMO supply. "Why was no prompt effective action taken to import the planned 1 lakh MT oxygen during the past five months? Is it true that only 33 out of the planned PSA oxygen generators have been installed in the hospitals so far?" he said.

Chavan said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's self-proclaimed victory over the COVID-19 pandemic at the World Economic Forum had left the global community aghast, particularly as more than 50 countries have banned incoming flights from India. "And now we are desperately asking for oxygen and other medical supplies from those countries. We are paying a huge price for this incompetent leadership. This complacency and lack of decisive action at the highest level has driven India to this catastrophe," he added.

BJP's state chief spokesperson Keshav Upadhye retorted saying, "First talk about your very own CM who said in November that the second wave of Coronavirus infection will be like a tsunami and yet did not prepare for the worst in five months," Upadhye said.