Delhi to receive 205 tonnes of oxygen by Tuesday: Railways

The railways will deliver its biggest consignment of 205 tonnes of liquid medical oxygen (LMO) to Delhi by Tuesday morning, the national transporter said.

While 120 tonnes of LMO in an ‘Oxygen Express’ with six tankers will be delivered to Delhi from Durgapur in West Bengal, 85 tonnes in four tankers will be delivered to the national capital from Hapa in Gujarat, it said on Monday.

The train from Hapa will halt at Gurgaon. The LMO will be transferred to trucks of the Delhi government and taken to the city.

Also read: Single COVID-19 shot boosts immunity against variants for those previously infected

The railways had earlier said an ‘Oxygen Express’, carrying 30.86 tonnes of LMO, from Angul in Odisha will arrive in Delhi by Monday evening. But this lot is meant for supply in Haryana, it later said.

“The railways is set to deliver its biggest single day load of nearly 205 tonnes to Delhi by tomorrow morning. This includes 120 tonnes from Durgapur and 85 tonnes from Hapa,” a statement from the railway ministry said.

“Oxygen Express to Delhi carrying 120 tonnes of Liquid Medical Oxygen is on its way from Durgapur and is expected to reach Delhi on May 4, 2021,” the ministry said.

Also read: COVID alert in 10 states. Read full list here

The railways so far has delivered around 1,125 tonnes of LMO in 76 tankers to various states. Twenty ‘Oxygen Express’ trains have already completed their journey and seven more such trains loaded with around 422 tonnes of LMO in 27 tankers are on way to their destinations, the ministry said.

“It is the Indian Railways endeavour to deliver as much LMO as possible in the shortest time possible to the requesting states,” railways said.

Telangana will receive its second ‘Oxygen Express’ from Angul carrying 60.23 tonnes of LMO. Haryana will receive its fourth and fifth such train carrying nearly 72 tonnes from Angul and Rourkela.

Another Oxygen Express with 85 tonnes is on its way from Hapa (Gujarat) to Gurgaon, the ministry said.

Also read: 1 CT-Scan equal to 300 chest x-rays: AIIMS Director warns against overuse

More ‘Oxygen Express’ trains to Madhya Pradesh (its fourth train), Uttar Pradesh (its tenth train), Telangana, Haryana and Delhi carrying 422.08 tonnes of LMO are on their way.

Out of the 1,125 tonnes of LMO, Maharashtra got 174 tonnes, Uttar Pradesh 430.51 tonnes, Madhya Pradesh 156.96 tonnes, Delhi 190 tonnes, Haryana 109.71 tonnes and Telangana 63.6 tonnes.

The railways also said that the Empowered Group-2, which decides oxygen quotas for states, had on Thursday set the ball rolling for mapping sources of medical oxygen and their production capacity to match the requirement of 12 high-burden states.

The group, formed by the PMO and comprising officials from different ministries and experts, has also developed a framework for the purpose.