Supply enough oxygen to Telangana: HC to Centre

HC panel directed the Centre to assist the State in meeting the increased demand for oxygen

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Wednesday issued various directions to the Central government, State government and the Director-General of Police (DGP) to optimise efforts to tackle Covid-19 pandemic.

A two-judge panel comprising Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice B Vijaysen Reddy directed the Centre to assist the State in meeting the increased demand for oxygen. The panel noted the submissions of the Director of Public Health of Telangana, Dr G Srinivasa Rao, that there were delays in the allotted oxygen being delivered to the State. The panel directed the Centre to expedite its efforts in transporting oxygen from neighbouring States such as Tamil Nadu that have refused to allot oxygen earmarked for Telangana.

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The Telangana government was also directed to comply with earlier orders of the panel to appoint District Nodal Officers to conduct an audit on oxygen requirements. The panel appreciated the efforts of the government in establishing the HITAM app for enabling communication between medical staff and patients through a dedicated toll number for the GHMC area.

The same was directed to be extended to other districts before the next hearing with ample publicity given to it. The panel, having observed that the present government order imposing night curfew is set to expire on April 8, directed the State to consider extending the hours of the curfew and also imposing a lockdown on weekends as observed in other States.

The panel expressed its displeasure in the advisory committee under Section 17 of the Disaster Management Act not being set up even after repeated directions. The panel issued a strict direction for the committee to be set up within two days and the committee is to hold a meeting within two days of its constitution.

In a previous hearing, the panel had directed the State to make efforts to assist senior citizens living in old age homes and people with disabilities to get vaccinated. In response, the government, in its affidavit, submitted that transportation facilities were arranged for the said target group to vaccinate them. The panel further directed the State to collate information on the testing done by the three hundred mobile vans deployed by them. To curb violation of social distancing norms, the panel directed the State to reconsider its present policy of no-cap on the number of people attending outdoor events upon approval of district authorities.

The Director-General of Police was directed to book cases against the organisers of any event that violates covid guidelines. In addition, the DGP was also directed to set up police helpline facilities around hospitals to assist the public with all logistical support. The panel noted the submissions of senior counsel appearing for the petitioner who pointed out the disparities in the case numbers as provided by the private hospitals and the media bulletins of the state.

The State is to file information concerning the positivity rate from the new strain of the virus predominantly found in Andhra Pradesh and highlight the measures taken up to ensure that the same does not carry to Telangana from neighbouring States. The panel posted the case on May 13 for further hearing.

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