LUCKNOW: In the trying times of Covid-19 pandemic during which the demand for oxygen, shot up to unprecedented levels, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath inaugurated the state’s largest oxygen production plant in Modinagar, Ghaziabad, at a virtual ceremony on Thursday.
Medical oxygen is extremely important in the treatment of critically ill Covid-19 patients.
“The state’s struggle for oxygen will now be a thing of the past. After the installation of HFNC (high-flow nasal cannula), the oxygen demand had shot up in Covid- 19 facilities of the state. The new unit will bridge the gap between demand and supply during the current trying times of the pandemic when it is needed the most,” said UP Chief Minister Adityanath.
The chief minister expressed happiness that the company would now set up another plant in central Uttar Pradesh and more such plants would come up in the near future to eliminate the oxygen supply problem being faced by the northern state.
Commissioned by Inox Air Products, one of the largest producers of medical and industrial gases, the newly constructed Modinagar plant can produce 150 tonnes of liquid oxygen per day.
The plant was set up as part of an MoU (memorandum of understanding) signed between the Uttar Pradesh government and the company during the UP Investors’ Summit - 2018 in February 2018.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier laid the plant’s foundation back in July 2018.
The plant also can store 1,000 metric tonnes of oxygen. It will supply oxygen to 200 government and private hospitals in the state.
Apart from medical purposes, oxygen from the plant could also be utilised in various industries such as pharma, chemical, and electronics.