New Delhi, April 22: The oxygen shortage crisis in the national capital has still not eased, said Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday, informing that many hospitals in Delhi only had enough oxygen to last about 6 to 12 hours. While addressing a press conference here, Jain informed that along with oxygen, the city is also witnessing a crisis regarding ICU beds.

"The oxygen situation is different in different hospitals. It will last six hours in some, eight to ten in others. We can't call this a comfortable situation," the health minister said.

"There was a huge crisis last night. The Centre increased Delhi's allocation of oxygen to 480 Metric tons from 378 MT yesterday. But the 378 MT that was previously allocated also did not reach as the movement was interrupted in some states. This is why the crisis happened," Jain added. Oxygen Shortage in Delhi: Mata Chanan Devi Hospital Runs Out of Oxygen Supply.

He further said that the government had requested about 7,000 beds from the Centre, out of which, about 2,000 had been received. "There is a crisis of ICU beds as well. We have made a request to the Centre, I think they will give us 700-800 ICU beds soon. We have demanded 7,000 beds for Central government-run hospitals, they have given us around 2,000," he said.

Over the last few days, the national capital's health infrastructure has started to crack under the weight city's fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. As many as 24,638 new cases and 249 related deaths were reported in Delhi on Wednesday, the Delhi health department informed. Delhi Facing Oxygen Crisis As COVID-19 Cases Surge, National Capital Facing Tough Time, Says CM Arvind Kejriwal.

There are currently 85,364 active cases in the city, while the death toll stands at a grim 12,887. The fatality rate in Delhi stands at 1.39 per cent. The COVID-19 positivity rate in the city is 31.28 per cent.

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