Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj forced to dial Uddhav, Yogi, Gehlot to ‘free’ oxygen tankers

BHOPAL: At a time when Madhya Pradesh is crying out for oxygen, there have been instances of tankers carrying oxygen to the state being stopped by officials in other states, like Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Maharashtra. In some cases, it took calls from the CMO to get them released, say sources.


In the last two days, officials in Gujarat and Maharashtra held up oxygen supply at the source points, where they were being filled up for delivery to MP. Chief minister Shivraj Singh spoke with the chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan over phone about the incidents, say sources in the government.


The CMO said that the tankers were not held up by the governments of these states but by some local officials, either at source or when they were about to cross over to MP. “The issue has been resolved,” the CMO said.

The Shivraj government has given ambulance status to oxygen tankers in MP. A green channel is created for them and they are escorted by police to ensure there are no hold-ups. “Every minute is crucial these days. Hospitals are swamped with Covid patients. Liquid oxygen systems and cylinders have to be refilled on a war footing as lives depend on it,” an official said, pointing out the Shahdol tragedy where at least six critically ill patients died as oxygen pressure dipped.

On Monday, there were allegations that lack of oxygen led to deaths at a Bhopal hospital. All around, there is a desperation for oxygen. It’s common to see people carrying home oxygen cylinders on two-wheelers. Outside hospitals, patients’ kin wait in cars with oxygen cylinders.

CM Chouhan has spoken with PM Narendra Modi, Union ministers and CMs of many states to ensure uninterrupted supply to Madhya Pradesh. MP has no oxygen plant, and is dependent on other states and private firms.

The CMO said that 414 metric tonnes of oxygen is available in Madhya Pradesh now. On April 18, 390 MT of oxygen was available against a consumption of 347 MT. The government hopes to increase oxygen availability to 565 MT by April 25.