Visakhapatnam-based Eastern Naval Command (ENC) has offered the Andhra Pradesh government technical assistance in the operation and maintenance of oxygen systems in its hospitals and has dispatched four teams by air to the districts when the situation warrants.
According to an official press release, the ENC teams will bring their expertise in preventing oxygen leaks, performing emergency repairs and providing other support services as oxygen became scarcer and hospitals struggled to grapple with the technical details of the care.
The ENC also agreed to move 25 cryogenic oxygen containers from Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.
Consultations on this were held on Friday by Nodal Officer MT Krishna Babu of the state COVID control room with senior ENC officials in Visakhapatnam.
The ENC agreed to provide vehicles for transporting liquid oxygen containers by road, as well as oxygen concentrators, 200-D cylinders and other equipment required by hospitals. It also agreed to reserve 60 beds in its Visakhapatnam hospital for treating COVID-19 patients in addition to 10 oxygen-assisted beds.
VSP to set up CCC
In separate discussions, the CMD of the Visakhapatnam steelworks (VSP) informed Mr Krishna Babu that the existing oxygen plant, which consists of two units, was producing 100 tons (MT) with a total capacity of 850 tons due to certain problems, and that the contract agency had rejected it. It is hoped that the oxygen system will be fully functional in six months.
The VSP agreed to set up an oxygen-equipped COVID Care Center (CCC) with 50 beds in Gurajada Kalakshetram in the port city. In addition, the VSP will arrange 150 beds by May 15 and 600 beds by the end of June.