COVID centre in Delhi to be started as soon as possible: ITBP

New Delhi, Apr 24 (PTI) The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) on Saturday said it will operationalise a COVID care centre with 500 oxygen beds in south Delhi "as soon as possible".

The necessary guidelines, process of registration, admission, treatment and other requirements will be issued shortly, an ITBP spokesperson said in a late-night statement.

"The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has designated ITBP as the nodal agency for operating 500 oxygenated beds for COVID-19 patients at the Sardar Patel COVID care centre (SPCCC) in Radha Soami Beas, Chhatarpur. The force will start the functioning of the centre as soon as possible," he said.

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) will be strictly followed in the admission of patients, he added.

The MHA had declared on April 22 that the SPCCC, which was made operational in July last year and shut in February this year as coronavirus infections declined in the national capital, was being restarted on the Delhi government's request as the cases are rising rapidly once again.

As many as 11,657 COVID-19 patients were treated at this centre between July-February.

The medical wing of the ITBP, assisted by the similar setup of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) under the MHA, will be running the centre like last time.

"Final administrative and medical arrangements are being made at the centre to make it fully functional," officials said. PTI NES DIV DIV