NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force has flown supplies to Lucknow to set up a hospital for COVID-19 patients in the capital city, an official statement said on Friday.
India is struggling with the second wave of the novel coronavirus infection as hospitals in several states are reeling under a shortage of medical oxygen and beds.
"The Indian Air Force (IAF) is continuing to carry out sorties from within India and abroad to cater to the requirement of oxygen in the country, amid the current COVID-19 situation," said the office of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Twitter.
An IL-76 aircraft landed in Lucknow carrying supplies for setting up of COVID hospital in the city, it said.
As on April 29, IAF carried out 23 sorties from abroad, airlifting 39 oxygen containers with 670 metric tonnes of capacity, while from within the country, it carried out 124 sorties, airlifting 87 containers with 1,798 metric tonnes capacity, it mentioned.
India saw 3,86,452 new coronavirus infections in a span of 24 hours, the highest single-day rise so far, pushing the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 1,87,62,976, while active cases crossed the 31 lakh-mark, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Friday.