New Delhi, Dec 21 (PTI) Delhi has a buffer stock of 421 metric tonnes of liquid medical oxygen to tackle a surge in COVID-19 cases, according to government data.

The Delhi government has ramped up the medical oxygen infrastructure to tackle a possible third wave and in view of the threat posed due to the new variant Omicron. It has also procured 6,000 D type cylinders, while it did not have such cylinders till May 31.

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According to government data, the national capital has a buffer stock of 421 metric tonnes of liquid medical oxygen, something which was not there when Delhi grappled with the second wave of the infection.

The city also has Pressure Adsorption plants that have a capacity of producing 130.7 metric tonnes of oxygen. There were no such facilities in Delhi till May 31.

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Two cryogenic bottling plants with capacity of 12.5 metric tonne will be commissioned this week, and these will have the capacity to refill 1,400 jumbo cylinders in a day.

Till May 31, the government had three refillers that could fill about 1,500 cylinders per day.

Delhi was hit by a brutal second wave of the pandemic in April-May, which claimed a massive number of lives daily, and the oxygen supply shortage issue at various hospitals had added to the woes.

Since April 19, both COVID-19 daily cases and single-day deaths count had been spiralling up, with over 28,000 cases and 277 deaths recorded on April 20; rising to 306 fatalities on April 22. On May 3, the city registered a record 448 deaths, according to official data.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)