Delhi govt sought four times more oxygen than required during second Covid wave: SC oxygen audit panel

By LE Staff

New Delhi, June 25, 2021: The Delhi Government exaggerated the capital’s oxygen needs by four times at the peak of the second wave of Covid-19 in April-May and the supply of excess oxygen to Delhi “affected other states”, says a report of the oxygen audit committee set up by the Supreme Court.

Noting “gross discrepancy” in actual consumption claimed in comparison to the calculated consumption in the national capital, the sub-group’s interim report, that was submitted to the apex court, said the Delhi government’s claim of 1,140 Metric Tonnes was four times higher than the calculated consumption as per bed capacity formula, which was 289 MT only, NDTV reported. 

The report further said four hospitals — Singhal, Aryan Asaf Ali, ESIC Model & Liferay claimed extremely high LMO consumption with very few beds and “the claims appeared to be clearly erroneous leading to extremely skewed info and significantly higher Oxygen requirement for Delhi”, reported The Indian Express.

After “recalculation”, the Group said while the “actual consumption of 183 hospitals as per data from Delhi government was 1140 MT, the “actual…consumption after correcting erroneous reporting by 4 hospitals” was 209 MT.

The sub-group, led by AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria, includes Delhi Government Principal Home Secretary Bhupinder Bhalla, Max Healthcare Director Sandeep Buddhiraja, Union Jal Shakti Ministry Joint Secretary Subodh Yadav and Sanjay Kumar Singh of the Petroleum and Oxygen Safety Organization (PESO).

The damning observations on Delhi’s “inflated” claims on oxygen needs are from a PESO study that is a part of the interim findings.

According to the study, Delhi Government’s data said from April 29 to May 10, the consumption of oxygen did not exceed 350 MT.

The average consumption of oxygen in Delhi was between 284 to 372 MT, it said, adding that the infrastructure was inadequate for storing 700 MT, the amount that the Supreme Court had ordered the Centre to supply to Delhi.

Delhi had “surplus oxygen, which is affecting the supplies to other states and are a disaster in waiting, if it continues like this,” the PESO study said.

“It was discussed that there is a gross discrepancy (about 4 times) in that the actual oxygen consumption claimed (1140MT) was about 4 times higher than the versus calculated consumption by formula for bed capacity (289MT),” the report says, quoting a presentation made before the sub-group.

The AAP government slammed what it called lies and mischief and asserted that such a report does not exist.