New Delhi, May 5 (PTI) State-owned steel maker RINL on Wednesday said it has enhanced the daily oxygen supply limit to 160 metric tonne (MT) and setting up a 1,000-bed COVID care centre.

Since April 13, the company has already supplied 3,050 MT of liquid medical oxygen (LMO), while the cumulative dispatch has crossed 11,900 MT since the onset of the pandemic, Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd (RINL) said in a statement.

The production of LMO is taking place 24x7 at all the five units of oxygen making plants at Visakhapatnam. Similarly, non-stop dispatch of LMO is being done through rail and road in cryogenic tankers, it added.

On April 22, the first Oxygen Express carrying 100 MT of LMO in 7 cryogenic tankers was dispatched to Maharashtra to meet the critical medical emergencies in the state, RINL said.

Besides supplying oxygen, RINL said it is also setting up a 1,000 bed COVID care centre facility at the plant.

"The cots required for this massive arrangement are being manufactured inside the plant. Arrangements have been made for a continuous supply of oxygen near the beds for the COVID patient. Further, in a phased manner various community halls and public halls/spaces will be converted into hospital wards for treatment of COVID patients," it noted.

Integrated steel plants produce oxygen for various steel-making processes, including in the basic oxygen furnace (BoF).

On the direction of the Ministry of Steel, the plants are supplying oxygen to various health facilities across the country amid rising demand for the life-saving gas, being used to treat COVID-19 patients.

(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)