CM Arvind Kejriwal personally monitoring COVID situation

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is personally monitoring COVID situation, ensuring that Delhi is well equipped for any incoming threat of the Omicron variant. The CM chaired a high-level meeting with all concerned authorities to review the state’s preparedness against Covid. Among growing concerns about the new variant and its probable threat, the status of health facilities was addressed and orders were issued to increase these. Plans carved for health services – beds, oxygen, medicines and vaccines – to reach every ward and every single person in Delhi. 30,000 COVID beds are ready in Delhi, with 100 beds per ward to be arranged as and when required on a 2 week notice. Medicine stocks are currently being added, and home isolation arrangements are being strengthened. Oxygen supply & storage is being bolstered and telemetry devices to provide real time oxygen tracking are being installed in all oxygen facilities. 6,000 oxygen cylinders have been imported and 15 oxygen tankers bought to prevent oxygen shortage. 97% Delhiites have received the first dose of the vaccine, and 57% are fully vaccinated. The CM concluded by urging people to get their second dose soon, and said that Delhi is prepared to deal with any possible threat of another wave.

Dedicated to keeping the threat of Covid in Delhi at bay, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal held a crucial meeting with high-ranking officials to review the state’s preparedness. The Kejriwal Government in Delhi has shown serious concern about the possible spread of the foreign variants in India. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is personally keeping an eye on the preparations being made to keep the people of Delhi safe from the probable threat of the new variant. The CM held a high-level meeting at the Delhi Secretariat today and intricately assessed these preparations. The review meeting mainly focused on the current situation of COVID, testing and prevention measures, upgradation and increasing Covid beds, training of people for Covid Management, procurement of medicines, home isolation and 1031 helpline, oxygen supply, and vaccination numbers. All these points were discussed including genome sequencing, screening preparation of passengers landing at the IGI airport. Health Minister Satyendar Jain, Revenue Minister Kailash Gahlot, Chief Secretary Vijay Kumar Dev and all senior officers of every department involved including DCs were present at the review meeting.

*Omicron variant has increased everyone’s anxieties; keeping a close watch, reviewing preparations to tackle the threat: CM Arvind Kejriwal*

Arvind Kejriwal said, “The Omicron variant of Coronavirus has increased people’s anxieties all over the world. We hope and pray that it doesn’t enter or spread in India. But in case of the probable threat, it is our duty as a responsible government, to arrange all required preparations beforehand in order to tackle the virus. Today, I held a meeting with all concerned departments to discuss and assess the preparations, and took note of the status of facilities available. The discussion covered the number of beds available, the number of beds needed additionally, testing rates and requirements, oxygen requirement, vaccination status, ICU requirement, manpower and the like.”

*30,000 COVID beds ready in Delhi; each ward to get 100 beds as and when required: CM Arvind Kejriwal*

The CM continued, “As far as beds are concerned, the bed capacity in hospitals had been increased to 25,106 during the second wave of Corona in May 2021. We have now arranged for 30,000 oxygen beds already, out of which around 10,000 are ICU beds. Additionally, 6800 ICU beds are currently under construction, and will be ready by February 2022 which will bring the capacity of ICU beds to around 17,000 soon. Besides this, we have planned our preparations in such a way that we are able to arrange 100 oxygen beds in every municipal ward on a two-weeks notice. Hence, for the 270 wards, 27,000 oxygen beds can further be arranged on a short notice. This brings us to a total of 63,800 beds, which we have prepared or are in the process of being prepared with. All the manpower that will be needed for this is currently being trained.”

*Medicine stocks being added, home isolation being strengthened: CM Arvind Kejriwal*

He added, “There are 32 kinds of medicines which are required to treat Covid-19 patients. A two-month buffer stock of these medicines is being ordered in order to avoid running short on these in any manner. Home isolation arrangements are also being actively made so that in the off chance that a third wave of coronavirus does hit, or that the Omicron variant spreads in India, we are well prepared to protect ourselves from it.”

*Oxygen supply & storage being bolstered; telemetry devices to provide real time oxygen tracking: CM Arvind Kejriwal*

Kejriwal further said, “Oxygen supply and shortage was a major crisis during the second wave. It is estimated that all the hospitals in Delhi have a combined oxygen capacity of 750 MT. The biggest obstacle last time was regarding the distribution of oxygen. To deal with storage and distribution problem of oxygen we have constructed extra storage facilities of 442 MT. Delhi has also constructed PSA plants to produce oxygen within the state and not rely on supply from outside. 121 MT oxygen has begun to be produced within Delhi. This way we will avoid the oxygen crisis which we faced last time, and ensure that hospitals do not run out of oxygen supply in any circumstance. We have ensured that telemetry equipment is installed in each small or large oxygen storage facility. With the installation of such devices, data will be shared in real time on the dashboard in our war rooms and help us monitor oxygen levels in each tank. This will aid us to have a fully prepared oxygen supply chain and efficient management of the same.”

*6,000 oxygen cylinders, 15 oxygen tankers to prevent oxygen shortage: CM Arvind Kejriwal*

He stated, “Previously, spare capacity to store oxygen, in addition to oxygen cylinders with pre-existing beds, were not present in Delhi. To solve this, 6,000 D-type empty cylinders have been imported from China to supply beds with oxygen as and when needed. Through this, oxygen beds can be arranged in non-hospital areas very easily. We currently have three private oxygen refilling plants which have a capacity of filling 1,500 cylinders a day. In addition to this, we have built two bottling plants as well with an approximate capacity of 1,400 cylinders as well.  Hence, Delhi’s refilling capacity has increased to 2,900 cylinders per day. Another major issue Delhi faced last time was in the supply of oxygen being brought in from Panipat. Now we are buying 15 oxygen tankers, which will arrive within a month to avoid this problem.”

*93% Delhiites have received first dose of the vaccine; 57% fully vaccinated: CM Arvind Kejriwal*

“The current status of vaccination is good. 93% of people have received their first dose. 57% have received the second dose as well. It is my humble request to everyone whose second dose is due to come forward and complete their vaccination. These are the fronts that we have assessed our preparations on in today’s meeting. I once again hope that Omicron Virus does not affect India, and that we avoid a third wave. We have gone through great difficulties dealing with the first two waves, but in the unfortunate case that we have to deal with it again, we are ready.”

*CM Arvind Kejriwal showing alertness from the beginning regarding foreign variants; monitoring the situation personally*

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been alert since the beginning about the foreign variants and is constantly monitoring the situation. He had written a letter to the Central Government demanding a ban on flights coming from affected countries to Delhi. After the intervention of Arvind Kejriwal, a meeting of DDMA was held yesterday, in which important points were discussed, including the ban on flights entering India via Delhi.

*Specialist doctors will also be able to treat Covid patients if needed*

The Delhi Government is also focusing on increasing manpower for Covid management, so that if the rate of infection picks up, there is no shortage of doctors, nurses and paramedic staff. For this, the Delhi government has given special training in Covid Management to medical students, nurses and paramedical staff along with specialist doctors. The government has trained a total of 15,370 healthcare workers which includes 4,673 doctors, 1,707 medical students, 6,265 nurses and 2,726 paramedics. They have been given training in oxygen therapy, Covid Management, Paediatric Ward Covid Management.

*Five thousand health assistants also roped in*

The Delhi government has also roped in five thousand health assistants. Health assistants have been given basic training in nursing, paramedics, home care, blood pressure measurement, vaccination etc. Health assistants will work as assistants to doctors and nurses and will not be able to take decisions on their own. With their help, doctors will be able to work more efficiently and patients will also be taken care of very well.

*Adequate supply of medicines and equipment being ensured*

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal directed the officers that there should be no shortage of medicines and equipment. He said that the purchase of essential medicines and equipment should be completed beforehand from now on. 32 medicines have been identified by the committee constituted by the Delhi Government and it has been mandated to maintain the buffer stock of these medicines for 60 days. In addition, 8 drugs have been identified by the Central Government and as per their recommendations, it is necessary to maintain the buffer stock of these medicines for 30 days. Similarly, the demand for equipment will increase as beds increase. In view of this, the process of procurement has been started after identifying those equipment.

*Medical oxygen infrastructure being rapidly ramped up by the Delhi Government*

The Delhi Government is rapidly ramping up its medical oxygen infrastructure to be prepared for higher demands whenever needed. In this direction, the government is actively working upon increasing LMO capacity, increasing PSA capacity, augmenting refilling capacities for cylinders, procuring tankers and installing telemetry devices.

*All oxygen storage facilities to get telemetry equipment; levels to be tracked in real time on the dashboard*

The CM has directed officials to ensure that telemetry equipment is installed in each oxygen storage facility no matter how small or large it may be. The CM has said that with the installation of such devices, there will be real time data available on the dashboard with regard to oxygen levels. This will help the authorities track the status of oxygen in each facility in order for the supply chain to be fully prepared.

*Oxygen capacity of Delhi increased significantly by the Kejriwal Government*

The Kejriwal Government has significantly increased the oxygen capacity of Delhi. In terms of liquid medical oxygen Delhi now has 790 MT of storage capacity. Beyond that, an LMO buffer reserve of 442 MT has been established in the state as well. Apart from this, the PSA capacity of Delhi too has been ramped up to 121.37 MT.  The capacity of oxygen cylinders with medical institutions itself has been taken up to 217 MT. Additionally, 6,000 D type cylinders have been placed in reserve for emergency use. Previously, the oxygen refilling capacity of Delhi was limited to 1,500 cylinders a day, now, 2 cryogenic plants with an installed capacity of 12.5 MT will be able to refill an additional 1,400 jumbo cylinders every day.

*Home isolation system will be further strengthened*

The Delhi Government will further strengthen its home isolation system. Patients with mild symptoms of Corona are being treated at home in Delhi. For this, the Delhi government has made a strong system under which, the team of doctors constituted by the Delhi government for the patients undergoing treatment in home isolation, gets health related information recorded by calling them every morning and evening. During this, the patients and the caregiver are given information about what safety measures are to be adopted. If the patient’s health gets serious, then the doctor shifts them to a hospital.

*Help can be taken through the Covid helpline number 1031*

Delhi Government has issued a Covid helpline number — 1031, to help Covid patients during any problem. This helpline number works 24×7. It employs employees in three shifts, who can attend 600 to 700 calls. If there is an increase in the call number, the number of employees will be increased. By calling the helpline number, one can get oxygen cylinders, tele-consultation, pulse oximeters, medicine kits, vaccination information and information on availability of hospital beds, home isolation, ambulance services and tests.

*Delhi government has so far administered 2.25 crore doses of vaccines*

The Delhi government has been very serious since the beginning about vaccinating its citizens to keep them safe from Corona. As a result of this, 2.25 crore vaccine doses have now been administered in Delhi. 137.94 lakh people have taken the first dose of the vaccine, while 87.05 lakh people have been given both the doses of the vaccine. 42.14 lakh people above 45 years of age have been given one dose, while 31.44 lakh people have been given both doses. Similarly, 88.75 lakh people in the age group of 18 to 44 years have been given one dose and 49.37 lakh people have been given both. 2.61 lakh health workers have taken one dose and 2.34 lakh have taken both the doses. 4.44 lakh front line workers have taken one dose and 3.90 lakh have taken both doses of the vaccine. The Delhi government has the capacity to vaccinate 3 lakh doses per day. To vaccinate every person, under the campaign, the remaining people are being identified and prepared for vaccination and vaccination is being done through camp and mobile teams.

*Mobile vans to test passengers at IGI Airport*

The Delhi Government has decided to intensify the testing at IGI Airport to protect the residents of Delhi from the new variant of Corona. The passengers are being screened as per the guidelines of the Government of India at the airport. But from December 1, new guidelines will be implemented. Which includes testing, isolation and quarantine of passengers. Passengers will not face any inconvenience in taking the test report and mobile vans will be placed to test and give them the reports in time so that passengers do not have to stay for long at the airport.

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