PM-CARES fund allocates over Rs 201 crore to boost medical oxygen availability across country

A sum of Rs 201.58 crore from the PM-CARES Fund is being allocated for installing 162 dedicated PSA medical oxygen generation plants in public health facilities across the country, the PMO said on Tuesday. It stressed that adequate and uninterrupted supply of oxygen is an essential pre-requisite for managing moderate and severe cases of COVID -19, in addition to various other medical conditions where this need arises.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in March announced the creation of the PM’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES) where people can contribute to help in the government’s fight against the coronavirus and similar “distressing situations”. The PM CARES Fund is allocating Rs 201.58 crore for the installation of additional 162 dedicated pressure swing adsorption (PSA) medical oxygen generation plants in public health facilities across the country, the Prime Minister’s Office said.

The total project cost includes Rs 137.33 crore towards supply and commissioning of the plants and management fee of central medical supply store (CMSS) and around Rs 64.25 crore towards comprehensive annual maintenance contract, it added. The central medical supply store, an autonomous body of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, will undertake the procurement.

The PMO said a total of 162 plants with a total capacity of 154.19 MT will be installed in 32 states and union territories, adding that the government hospitals for these plants’ installation have been identified in consultation with the administration concerned. The plants have a warranty for the first three years, and for the next seven years, the project includes a comprehensive annual maintenance contract.

The PMO said this mechanism will further strengthen the public health system and enable long-term systematic augmentation of medical oxygen availability in a cost-effective manner. Installation of PSA oxygen concentrator plants in public health facilities is an important step to reduce the health facility’s dependence on the system of store and supply and to enable these facilities to have their own oxygen generation capacity.

This will not only increase the total oxygen availability pool of the states and UTs but also facilitate providing of oxygen support in a timely manner to patients in these public health facilities, it said. The Trust is headed by the prime minister. The other ex-officio members of the trust are the defence minister, the home minister and the finance minister.