Hyderabad: The State government on Saturday sent 10 tankers fixed with GPS tracking devices to Angul in Odisha for getting medical oxygen to meet the requirements of Covid patients in various hospitals in the State. This is in addition to medical oxygen brought by companies and other manufacturers by road.
Of the 10 tankers, half a dozen vehicles were sent to Angul by train while four by Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft which had already landed at the Bhubaneswar airport in the evening before reaching Angul by road.
Officials fixed GPS tracking devices to monitor the movement of tankers each with a capacity ranging from 13 metric tonnes to 20 metric tonnes.
The tankers sent by IAF aircraft will reach the city in two days by road while the vehicles that left for Odisha by train from Sanathnagar railway siding will arrive in three days. After reaching the city, the tankers will be disbursed to hospitals across twin cities to meet patients’ requirements, officials said.
A TSRTC team with a compressor, generator, automatic, mechanical, and pneumatic devices to remove and fix tyres of tankers that are arriving by road is accompanying the tanker drivers. The IT department extended necessary help in fixing GPS tracking devices to tankers to monitor the movement of vehicles and to reduce the overall time taken to reach the city.
“We will be constantly monitoring the movement of tankers through GPS tracking devices. If anyone attempts to stop the vehicle or divert it to another area, we can immediately take necessary action,” said Deputy Transport Commissioner K Papa Rao. As a precautionary measure, a police escort is also provided to the six tankers, which will be reaching Hyderabad by road.
“We are ensuring proper supply of oxygen to hospitals from Odisha in coordination with various departments,” he said. In the last 24 hours, 318 metric tonnes of oxygen was brought to Telangana through tankers from outside in addition to 144 metric tonnes of production in the State.
Now you can get handpicked stories from Telangana Today onTelegrameveryday. Click the link to subscribe.