COVID-19: India to provide liquid oxygen to Nepal within 8-10 days amid severe shortage

Amid a severe oxygen shortage, India has promised to send tankers of liquid oxygen to Nepal. In a virtual event held on Monday, May 17, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Vinay Mohan Kwatra, announced that oxygen will arrive in Nepal from India within a span of 8 to 10 days.

According to ANI, he said, “India will continue helping and assisting Nepal at the hour of crisis. 2.3 million doses of Covishield vaccine have already been delivered. Within another 8 to 10 days, tankers with liquid oxygen would arrive in Nepal”. According to a tally by the John Hopkins University, Nepal has a total of 464,218 cases with over 5,000 deaths. 

ANI reported that Kathmandu on average needs 15,000 oxygen gas cylinders on a daily basis at the current time. It is also expected that the number might run high in the coming days as the peak of the ongoing pandemic is expected in the coming month. Even though empty oxygen gas cylinders are being outsourced from various countries, the gap between available cylinders and their demand on a daily basis is widening. 

Current situation in Nepal 

This comes after the Nepal Mountaineering Association requested climbers of the ongoing Spring Expedition to bring back their canisters so that they can be refilled to supply the medical gas to COVID-19 patients. The NMA urged climbers to bring back their empty or unused oxygen cylinders as coronavirus infection in Nepal is surging and patients are gasping for oxygen. In recent weeks, Nepal’s daily case trajectory has shot up with two out of five people testing positive.

Usually, oxygen canisters are left on slopes and ridges of mountains, however, with rising cases, the NMA has communicated with the expedition organisers and agents requesting them to bring back the cylinders for refilling. As per reports, hospitals in the capital city, Kathmandu, are flooded with coronavirus patients who are lying on the ground gasping for life-saving gas due to the limited number of oxygen gas cylinders available. Dozens of patients in recent weeks have already lost their lives due to the shortage of oxygen cylinders.

(With inputs from ANI) (Image Credits: Pixabay/PTI)