OXYGEN SHORTAGE IN DELHI HOSPITALS AND CRITICAL SITUATION.[IInd COVID-Phase]
Ravi Speaks:
Updated on 10.12.2022.
Exactly one and a half year back- we all had a horrifying situation:
Exactly one and a half year back when I recall the sudden horrifying situation of Delhi-a real chill runs down my spine with a real horrifying feeling. I am reminded of all those scenes-which perhaps I had not seen in the whole of my life. All age groups well educated and mix of rich and poor -all trying desperately for a place in any of the Hospitals in Delhi-where they could get the Oxygen and somehow save their own lives. My friends and relations were suffering. Thank God -today at least that precarious condition is eased out. I pray to God that no where in the world such a situation comes again and people remain hale and healthy all around.
Republishing my earlier article-giving the reporting as of 24th April-2021:
I am republishing my article which has gone to other journals as well during those days. This gives us exact day-to-day on the spot happening of those days of terror-where all Delhiites were apprehensive as to what would be the next agony befalling. Let us go through this and realize one fact that if we were in the capital of a great country -India had to face all this -what would have been the pathetic condition in the rest of the cities and mainly even in the micro-cities and interiors.
The Oxygen Crisis and the invisible enemy.
Brief:-
During the past almost a fortnight- the situation here in Delhi has become very critical due to the extreme shortage of Oxygen gas in the leading hospitals resulting in huge causalities and the covid-19 spreading havoc with an average of more than 300,000 per day positive cases initially getting converted into 400,000 and above fresh reported infected cases in the country. In this article, the immediate steps to be enumerated along with a definite action plan to be followed has been earnestly requested to the people as well as to the authorities. This story is of the first five days when the shortage had just started happening and the number of causalities was being reported as a matter of shortage factor. Stress has been laid on stopping the blame game and focusing on collective efforts towards wiping off this menace.
OXYGEN SHORTAGE IN DELHI HOSPITALS AND CRITICAL SITUATION.
It all picked up from the second week of April’21:
On 16th April it was announced here in Delhi that the Lockdown would be effective for the whole week till the 25th early morning. Today it is the evening of 24th April and the next announcement as was expected for the extension of the Lockdown till one more week- has come.
The situation here has gone very serious and uncertainty has been prevailing not only here but around the whole major cities of India. The spread of the virus has been so rampant in the last fortnight that there was hardly any stoppage to the rate of growth of COVID-19 seen. For the past four days now the number every day of fresh cases has been crossing 3-lakhs figure and especially here in Delhi-the same number is around 25,000 for the past four to five days on daily basis.
Oxygen Shortage killing people-where are the authorities?
On top of it, all things have gone even worst due to the shortage of Oxygen in the major hospitals of the capital. Yesterday there were 25 casualties reported from Sir-Ganga Ram Hospital due to O2-shortage and today in the morning it was yet another prestigious Hospital-Jaipur Golden Hospital from Rohini-where another 25 people were reported dead due to the same-O2 shortage.
The biggest question arising this time is -” How fast the O2 gas is arranged in all the Hospitals in Delhi and how many people’s lives could be saved due to immediate action like that? The question as to why all this miserable happening took place due to the mess in the planning is surely a very important and crucial one -but looking to the present situation this becomes a question to be dealt with later.
I remember on 5th April I was in Jammu in connection with the marriage preparations of my son and at that time there was not any such inkling that things would take such a drastic & horrifying shape. My son had to get married on the 29th of April and the events took place in such a way so fast that we had to postpone the whole ceremony to the later months, once this Tsunami like situation subsides.
Supreme Court and High Court issuing alarming statements to authorities:
Even the Apex Court and the High Court of Delhi have issued very alarming statements to the Delhi Government and even to the Centre-saying if anyone was found involved anywhere in the process of O2-distribution delay to the capital-they would prefer hanging such a parson. How brutal the things have gone today-we are at a loss to understand the same.
Still no Oxygen in the capital:
With the immediate precautionary steps taken by the government now-let, we all pray that things are within control soon and every patient who needs O2-gas gets it without any further delay and saves himself from the clutches of death. Look at the scenes outside the major Hospitals this time. These are the heart-rending ones. People weeping and gasping for want of O2 outside the hospitals and the authorities told them very clearly that they better go back home since there was no O2 gas with them.
Heart-rending scenes at the leading cremation grounds:
The scene at the crematorium is even more disturbing and the people who had come to get their near ones cremated, have been given the tokens for their turns. This I have seen for the first time in my life of 60 years. There are heaps of dead bodies lying at the “Nigambodh-Gaat” and even at the Lajpat Nagar Crematorium. We had not seen such a scene so far in our lifetime.
People volunteering and using the social network and their intelligence:
People on their own have shown some intelligence and helped each other through their groups formed in WhatsApp and Telegram sites. They have even spread the contact numbers for the availability of important medicines like ‘Remdisivir’ and O2-gas cylinders. At the same time, some very important persons are involved in the black marketing of such life-saving items here in the capital.
Another set of ferocious people known as Black marketeers shamelessly doing their job:
Look at the irony of it even these black marketeers don’t realize that such a situation could come to them as well as to their near kith and kin. Realization of such facts could have changed their actions but as luck would have it-different people remain different for their actions and their different thinking processes always.
Now, look at the people, in general, this time. All are in big chaos and perplexed as to what should they do and keep themselves away from this widespread infection of the invisible enemy. I have been seeing for the last couple of days almost all have been wearing the masks and even the number of people coming out is almost very few. They seem to be really terrified and eagerly waiting for this fast-spreading period to go slow and finally fade out.
Not learning from last year and sitting pretty:
Finally coming on to the various corrective courses. We all realize that the first wave of this infection last year had given all of us a fair chance to learn as to what could have been the precautionary way to remain away from such a disaster occurring. But alas-almost all of us thought that the period of first-wave meant the total wiping off of the situation-whereas that was our immaturity and we started moving around without the masks and even without maintaining the minimum distances.
Center more concerned about the elections and state government not acting smartly:
Even the government did not act smartly and did not put curbs on certain activities which could have also stopped this lethal spread further. They went on vigorously with the Election campaigns in the areas of elections in the various states and mainly in eastern states. There have been a large number of people gathering together without any precautionary measure being adopted. The leaders in their hunger for power did not heed any attention to the slowly spreading infections in the major cities like Mumbai and Delhi mainly and went on with their roadshows.
Still no action plan for even required logistics visible from state government:
A major part of negligence could be attributed to the central as well as state governments especially in terms of having no action plan arrived at for the stoppage of such a spread. Furthermore, since last year there had been no special attention given by the authorities towards framing any plan against the same. Even after the O2 gas shortages were pointed out by the important hospitals there has not been any concrete plan or blueprint made out by the center for the allocation of the O2 gas to the important states with the varying potentials of the infection carried out by them.
In the short span-chaotic situation in Delhi and foreign countries extending their help:
All these things compounded the situation to become critical. There has been a real mess as a result of that so many other countries have been volunteering to extend help to India in such a grave situation. Pray to God that this condition does not go from bad to worst any further and things are under control immediately. The number of casualties happening is stopped with immediate effect. The only thing which we need to do this time is to collectively render our bit of service to the people in any form-whatsoever, we could do. Also, importantly the government wakes up and prioritizes the works as they need to be done on basis of importance after finalizing a definite action plan for the same.
Finally, a colossal loss due to lapses:
Yes, there has been a bigger lapse resulting in the present situation of our country, it may be from the authorities or even from the common people.
Finally, let us not allow such a lapse again at any cost-which results in such a colossal loss.
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