Rajasthan govt asks private hospitals to install oxygen plants in 2 months
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Oxygen plant being installed at SMS Hospital in Jaipur.
Jaipur: The Rajasthan government has asked all the private hospitals in the state with a capacity of 60 or more beds to be prepared for a potential third wave of Covid-19. It will be mandatory for these hospitals to install a centralized oxygen system and oxygen generation plants within the next 2 months.
Siddharth Mahajan, Secretary, Department of Medicine and Health, has issued an order in this regard. As per the directives, the government is trying to meet the increasing demand for oxygen in the state. The private hospitals have been asked to pitch in.
The government is currently forced to rely on the union government and other states to meet the demand for oxygen. To avoid facing such an acute shortage, the government has instructed all these hospital operators to install a centralized oxygen system and oxygen generation plant within two months.
According to the orders issued by the Secretary, 50% of the total beds in these hospitals are required to have a centralized oxygen system. The supply of oxygen to these 50 percent beds will be through pipelines. Private hospitals should be self-reliant in terms of oxygen supply, so they have been asked to install oxygen generation plants.
The government has already announced a special package for setting up an oxygen plant. The Department of Industries will be exempted from the permissions and inspections taken from the concerned departments. At the same time, the government will extend support for getting necessary approvals from the concerned departments of the central government and also provide electricity and water connections soon.
Under the package, up to 25 percent of the expenditure on plant, machinery, and other equipment (maximum Rs 50 lakh) will be given in two installments as a capital grant. The first installment of the grant will be given on submission of a copy of the order issued for the purchase of plant, machinery, or equipment and the second installment on the production of proof of investment after starting the production.
