CHENNAI: A day after the Union Government said no deaths were reported in the country due to a shortage of medical oxygen during the second wave of Covid, State Health Minister Ma Subramanian on Wednesday reiterated the same claim with regard to Tamil Nadu.
Speaking to reporters, he said, “Not one life was lost due to a shortage of oxygen in our State. On May 7, when the DMK government came to power, the State’s oxygen production capacity was 230 metric tonnes, and 26,465 new Covid cases were reported on that day. On May 21, it peaked to 36,184, and by then, our oxygen requirement was over 500 MT.
Chief Minister MK Stalin spoke to the Central government and arranged for oxygen supply from Rourkela, Durgapur and Jamshedpur. Due to the hardwork of the Health Secretary and other officials, not a single life was lost due to oxygen shortage in TN.”
Considering Tamil Nadu’s speedy vaccination drive, the Centre has promised to allot five lakh additional vaccine doses to the State, he added. So far 72 lakh doses from July’s supply have been received. The Health Minister also promised that the out-sourcing manpower arrangement in the Health and Family Welfare Department will be done away with, and all eligible out-sourced workers will be absorbed into government service once normalcy returns.
A vaccination drive meeting with representatives of private hospitals in Chennai, Kancheepuram, Vellore and Tiruvallur districts will be conducted in Chennai within two days. Meanwhile, Madhya Pradesh Medical Education Minister Vishwas Sarang called on Subramanian at the Secretariat on Wednesday, and discussed Covid containment measures.