Steel fraternity supplied 1.43 lakh metric tons of medical oxygen to different states: Dharmendra Pradhan

Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday said that the steel plants from across the country have already supplied 1.43 lakh metric tons of medical oxygen to different states till now.

"The steel plants from across the country have already supplied 1.43 lakh metric tons of medical oxygen to different states with the central public sector enterprises in the steel sector contributing about 39 thousand metric tons of medical oxygen till now," he said.

He said that the steel fraternity stands with the nation in its collective fight against covid-19 under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.are also pitching in with their efforts to augment supply of medical oxygen to different states.

The Rourkela Steel plant under the Steel Authority of India Limited and the Kalinganagar plant of Tata Steel in Odisha are also pitching in with their efforts to augment the supply of medical oxygen to different states.

"Both the Rourkela Steel plant and Tata Steel plant in Odisha have already supplied about 70 metric tons of medical oxygen to Delhi and Maharashtra," he said.

In response, the chief minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal and the Chief Minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray have thanked Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for helping them with logistics for supply and transportation of medical oxygen from Odisha to their respective States.

Earlier, Patnaik, speaking to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over phone, had promised Odisha's cooperation at the national level including ramping up oxygen production to assist other states during this emergency.

The worsening COVID-19 situation has seen a surge in the demand for medical oxygen and beds for the COVID-19 patients and many states are reporting a shortage in essential medical supplies. Availability of oxygen is a key element in the treatment of certain medical conditions in the Covid infection.

( With inputs from ANI )