Telangana has decided to build 48 oxygen plants to address the future needs of oxygen in the state. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday directed the Medical and Health Department to set up 48 oxygen generation plants to produce 324 tones of oxygen at government hospitals, required for COVID-19 patients in the state.
Asking officials to ensure that there would not be any shortage of oxygen in future, he also instructed the officials to set up an additional plant to produce 100 tonnes of the liquid oxygen in Hyderabad. At a review meeting on the COVID-19 situation, KCR, as the Chief Minister is popularly known, directed that six units of 16 tones plants, 15 units of eight tone plants and 27 units of four tone plants should be set up at Hyderabad, district and area hospitals.
KCR, who recently took over the Health portfolio, asked the oxygen producers to hand over 11 tankers with each having the capacity of 20 tonnes within 10 days. He said that in the coming days, Telangana should not face a situation where it is dependent on other states for supply of oxygen. He has also appealed to people seeking COVID-19 treatment to get admitted to government hospitals and take advantage of availability of beds, oxygen and free treatment, food, medicines and other facilities, instead of spending huge sums of money in private hospitals.
Since the treatment is one and the same in private and government hospitals, people should prefer the government hospitals, he said, adding that as on Monday, there were 6,926 beds vacant in the government hospitals. Of these, 2,253 were oxygen beds, 533 ICU beds and 4,140 general beds.
KCR also instructed officials concerned to make arrangements for the equipment and the required medicines in ENT Hospital in Koti, Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad, and medical college hospitals in the districts to treat the ‘black fungus’ disease that is spreading among recovered patients. He said, if need be, 25 microdebrider machines, and HD endoscopic cameras be purchased immediately.
He asked the officials to immediately invite global tenders for the supply of the vaccines. He also wanted them to have continuous rapport with the Union government on the vaccination quota. The officials informed the CM that so far the state had received 57.30 lakh doses of vaccine only and as on date there is a stock of 1.86 lakh vaccine doses. Of this, 58,230 are of Covaxin and 1.28 lakh doses are of Covishield.
The CM stated that the government is ready to spend any amount of funds for improving medical and health infrastructure facilities. A decision has been taken to set up new medical colleges in Sangareddy, Jagtial, Kothagudem, Wanaparthy, Mancherial, and Mahabubabad. He also instructed that along with these medical colleges, colleges of nursing should also be formed.
The CM said in those medical colleges where there are no nursing colleges, they should be sanctioned. He said the proposals already submitted for the nursing colleges sanction should be examined immediately. He said to give medical treatment facilities and medicines to the poor in the government hospitals, 12 regional sub centres should be formed at Siddipet, Wanaparthy, Mehboobabad, Kothagudem, Nagar Kurnool, Suryapet, Bhongir, Jagtial, Mancherial, Bhupalpally, Vikarabad, and Gadwal.
To supply medicines on war footing to the several government hospitals from these centres, vehicles should be arranged either own or on lease. Similarly, to store the medicines, cold storage facilities should be set up at the sub centres. The CM instructed that the 200-bedded hospitals in Ananthagiri of Vikarabad, Singareni, RTC, CISF, Railways, Army and ESI hospitals should be brought in for COVID-19 treatment.