UP has emerged to be the second-worst state hit by the Covid-19 virus, as the second wave of the deadly virus hit India right in its unpreparedness. The most populated state in the country recorded about 38,055 new cases and about 223 deaths due to the virus in the past 24 hours.
The CM Yogi Adityanath, spoke virtually to editors of various newspapers and rendered hollow all the ‘rumors’ of the state being short of oxygen. “There is no shortage of oxygen in any COVID hospital, be it private or government. The problem is black marketing and hoarding, which will be tackled with a heavy hand. We are going to conduct an oxygen audit in collaboration with IIT Kanpur, IIM Lucknow and IIT BHU for proper monitoring of oxygen. The system of live tracking of oxygen demand, supply and distribution will be implemented,” the chief minister said.
Yogi urged to his people not to let their guards down and acknowledged that there were problems initially, in the state, regarding the hospital beds but the problems have been dealt with. He also claimed that there’s no shortage of drugs like Remdesivir in the state. And has claimed that UP is the first state in the country to give out “free vaccination to all”.
While asserting all of the above, Yogi has asked officials to act under the National Security Act (NSA) and take action against individuals spreading these ‘rumors’ regarding the shortage of oxygen. He claimed that these individuals were spreading propaganda over social media, trying to spoil the atmosphere. He said that the real problem wasn’t the shortage of oxygen but the black marketing and hoarding, instead.
A few days ago, on April 21, News 18 had reported about the oxygen crisis in UP. News of some private hospitals had to turn back the Covid-19 patients had emerged from Lucknow. Amid the growing demand for oxygen for the critical Covid-19 patients, the hospitals had put up notices outside their premises and asked people to shift serious patients to other hospitals, given the shortage of oxygen.
According to the reports, Mayo Medical Centre, a private hospital in Gomti Nagar had put up a notice saying, “We are requesting the family members of those patients who are on oxygen support please take their patients to higher centers for further management.” Another hospital in the area, Make Well Hospital had put up a similar notice outside its premises.
The Hindu had reported on 24 April about the shortage of oxygen in two hospitals near Gorakhpur, as they were struggling to maintain an uninterrupted flow of oxygen supply, jeopardizing the lives of those under critical care. Manoj Yadav, the owner of one of the two hospitals, Durgawati Hospital namely, refused to the reports of alleged interruption in oxygen supply but he did admit that they had to “slow down” the supply for a while when the refilling vehicle was not on time. The supply was not completely shut, according to his claims to The Hindu.
Yogi, in his interaction yesterday, claimed that a private hospital had reported a lack of oxygen, but on checking, it was found that the oxygen was sufficient. “Due to such people, fear is increasing among the public. Even those who don’t need it, are worried about oxygen cylinders,” said the CM who has been isolating since April 13 after he tested positive for Covid-19.