Suppliers struggling, hospitals in Mumbai Metropolitan Region queue up at oxygen production units

The shortage of oxygen to hospitals in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region MMR has hit not just private and civic centres but also defence hospitals who have been queuing up outside manufacturing companies On Tuesday midday visited one of the largest oxygen manufacturing companies Phoenix Gas Limited in Turbhe MIDC and found dozens of trucks and mini tempos waiting outside to fill their oxygen cylindersAn auto outside the Speed Oxygen plant in NalasoparaWith oxygen suppliers not able to meet the demand hospitals are having to send their own vehicles with ward boys to get oxygen from manufacturing units ldquoAmid the high levels of consumption suppliers are not able to meet the demand at every hospital Every day I make multiple rounds to manufacturing units to fill empty oxygen cylindersrdquo said Sandesh Pilane a ward boy from Siddhi Vinayak hospitalldquoIn a bid to fulfil client hospitalsrsquo needs we havenrsquot been able to sleep properly for the past few days Most of them have been taking it directly from manufacturing companies as we are not able to handle the pressure All our staff is stuck with providing supply to a few hospitals Currently I am trying to get some cylinders for a Raigad hospital and waiting for my turnrdquo said Maruti Jhinjhure an oxygen supplier Jhinjhure claimed that some of the manufacturing units are being partial towards a few selected hospitals by giving them cylinders in huge quantities while smaller ones are getting only a few leading to multiple tripsDefence hospital hitThe lack of oxygen has also hit one of the largest defence hospitals INHS Asvini at Colaba An army vehicle was seen waiting outside Phoenix Gas Limited to fill oxygen cylinders ldquoWe have never witnessed such a crisis and an acute shortage of oxygen cylinders Every day we have been making one trip to the manufacturing company to get oxygen for our COVID19 patientsrdquo a staff present inside the vehicle said midday has learnt that many retired defence personnel are undergoing COVID treatment at INHS Asvini A mail sent to Chief Public Relations Officer Defence went unansweredA civic ambulance waits outside Speed Oxygen in NalasoparaBrihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC staff and vehicles were also seen with large trolleys to load cylinders They needed the oxygen for a civic isolation centre ldquoThe pressure is huge the vehicles are going to every manufacturing unit wherever oxygen is available We are just doing our duty to save lives People have been dying due to lack of oxygenrdquo a ward boy working for a civicrun health facility saidAccording to the watchman of Phoenix Gas Limited dozens of vehicles come from hospitals daily and wait for hours to get oxygenOn the ground in NalasoparaOn Monday midday visited Speed Oxygen the largest oxygen manufacturing plant in Nalasopara East and found civic and police teams deployed to keep a check on the supplyThe owner of Speed Oxygen Prasad Raut said ldquoWe are following all government guidelines We have been asked by the authorities to supply cylinders only in the Palghar district We are getting enquiries from Mumbai and nearby areas but we are turning them awayrdquomidday speaks to Maruti Jhinjhure an oxygen supplier in Turbhe PicRajesh GuptaAfter middayrsquos report on the shortage of empty cylinders police and civic officials have intensified their watchAn officer attached to Waliv police station said ldquoWe received information that there is black marketing of O2 gas cylinders meant for medical purpose So we are doing an inspection around the plantrdquoA senior officer of the Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation VVCMC said ldquoWe have deployed one civic team at the plant and they are checking the files The plant has been suggested to prioritise people and hospitals in Palghar districtrdquomidday witnessed people visiting the plant in autorickshaws on scooters carrying empty O2 canisters to get them filled Many hospitals had sent their staff and vehicles to refill oxygen cylinders One ambulance from a civicrun hospital was also present at the spotSuppliers from Mumbai are equally affected by the shortage A distributor in Mumbai Khalid Sayyed who runs Lok Seva Traders told midday that demand has increased tenfold ldquoI have been distributing oxygen cylinders to around 55 hospitals between Dahisar and Malad With a tenfold rise in demand amid the surge the supply has been affectedrdquoDistributor Choradia Deep Agency based in Malad said the same and added that they have to send their own vehicle to Navi Mumbai to get the canisters refilled ldquoWe spend almost an entire day waiting for our turn Our customers are not hospitals but those who need oxygen support for their treatment There are asthmatic patients in need The cost has also gone uprdquo said proprietor Dipti ChoradialdquoThe manufactures say that they are not getting adequate raw material to produce gaseous oxygen at their planrdquo Choradia said adding that they charge a R10000 refundable deposit from their customers