Chief Minister Pramod Sawant came to the rescue of Sindhudurg by supplying oxygen at a time when the Maharashtra district was gasping. Sawant backed his decision saying it was a humanitarian crisis prevailing there and explained how Goa gets part of its supplies from Kolhapur and Raigad. Point taken, but the government must first explain the status of Goa’s oxygen levels with a detailed audit because there are conflicting views. There’s a humanitarian crisis across the nation, and Goa is no exception.
India is going through a massive shortfall of oxygen supplies. Delhi is in a state of war against the Centre for not being supplied with the allocated quota. Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and several other states are facing an acute shortage. Frantic pleas for help are falling on deaf ears. A week back, 23 people died at a Covid facility in Chamarajnagar, Karnataka due to lack of oxygen. Covid deaths due to oxygen shortage are no less than genocide, the Allahabad High Court had observed recently.
Cut into Goa and the GMC requirement alone, according to the Dean of Goa Medical College and Hospital Dr S M Bandekar, stands at one crore litres and is expected to shoot up to three crore litres in the days ahead. Health Minister Vishwajit Rane has admitted that the State is running short of 8,000 to 10,000 metric tonnes of liquid oxygen per day and the Goa Association of Resident Doctors have debunked claims of oxygen sufficiency. Finally, where do we stand?
Goa currently has a whopping 32,000-plus people under home isolation with positive cases hovering around 50 per cent. The shrill cries for oxygen at GMC in the late hours of the night are testimony to the fact that the State is still gasping. Lest we forget, a few days back CM’s intervention was sought close to midnight when 40 patients housed at ward number 142 were running dangerously low on oxygen. The nightmare continues even now. How does this put the State in a comfort zone?
The mutant virus is believed to be deadlier and constantly attacking the lungs of patients. Medical reports suggest that by the time symptoms start to show, the lungs are affected by up to 25 per cent. Oxygen levels are reported to be below 80 within three days, making supplies crucial for life support. Goa can be caught on the wrong foot anytime because of the high ratio of patients with co-morbidities and respiratory disorders.
Sawant's benevolence shown towards Sindhudurg is akin to the Centre's move to export vaccines to Brazil, Bangladesh, Nepal and Myanmar. The State needs to urgently heed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for an oxygen audit. There has to be stock-taking keeping in mind the scale of infection, critical cases and contingencies, and most importantly, there has to be transparency. As much as there is a need to understand the humanitarian view, there is also a need for Goans to get a clear picture of the State’s healthcare.
