Delhi High Court on Thursday directed the Centre to ensure oxygen is supplied to the national capital as per the allocation order and is transported without any hindrance.

The high court said there has to be strict compliance of oxygen allocation order issued by the Centre and non-compliance would attract criminal action.

A bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Rekha Palli said the Centre’s allocation of oxygen for Delhi from plants in other states such as Haryana was not being respected by the local administration there and it needs to be resolved immediately.

It directed the central government to provide adequate security to lorries transporting oxygen and to form dedicated corridors for the same.

The directions came after the Delhi government told the court that oxygen that was to come from Panipat in Haryana was not being allowed to be picked up by the local police there.

The Delhi government also told the court that oxygen, which was to be picked up from some units in Uttar Pradesh, could also be not lifted from there.

With regard to Delhi government’s suggestion to transport oxygen by air, the bench said research by its legal researchers has shown that airlifting of oxygen was very dangerous and it has to be transported either by road or rail.

Solicitor-general Tushar Mehta told the bench: “If there is any roadblock by any individuals or any officers, the officers have been instructed that if they are involved in any such activity they will be departmentally dealt with.”

“We must respond with a sense of urgency and sense of responsibility which the situation demands,” the solicitor-general said.

The high court on Wednesday issued strong strictures against the central government and private industries and had ordered the Centre to “forthwith” provide oxygen by whatever means to hospitals here facing shortage of the gas in treating serious Covid-19 patients, observing it “seems human life is not important for the state”.

“You are not exploring all avenues to augment oxygen supply. Beg, borrow or steal,” the court had told the Centre, and asked why it was not waking up to the gravity of the emergency situation. It also warned that certainly all hell will break loose with the stoppage of medical oxygen to the hospitals.

The observations and directions by the court came on Wednesday during hearing of a plea filed by Balaji Medical and Research Centre, which owns and runs various hospitals in the name of Max, contending that if supply of oxygen is not replenished on an immediate basis, the lives of the patients who are critical and on oxygen support will be endangered.

Hospitals struggle

Several small hospitals in the city struggled to replenish oxygen supply for coronavirus patients on Thursday morning, even as some big healthcare facilities received fresh stock overnight.

The administration at Shanti Mukund Hospital, a 200-bed facility in East Delhi, put up a notice at the entry gate, reading: “We regret we are stopping admission in hospital because oxygen supply isn’t coming.”

While the Centre represented by solicitor-general Mehta had assured the court that it would facilitate supply of the increased allocation of 480 metric tonnes of oxygen and the same will reach the national capital without any obstructions, several private hospitals complained their supplier has not been responding to calls.

Officials at Saroj Hospital in Rohini said they have run out of oxygen supply.

“The backup, too, won’t last long. Of the 120 patients in the hospital at present, 70 are in a critical condition,” an official said, adding that many lives will be lost if oxygen supply did not reach the hospital in time.

An official from Shanti Mukund Hospital told PTI they have not been able to get in touch with their oxygen supplier.

“There are 110 coronavirus patients in the hospital right now. We have no option but to send patients to other hospitals,” he said.

Dr Sanjeev Sharma, chief operating officer at Delhi Heart and Lung Institute, said their oxygen stock will last till 4pm.

“Supplier provided the last refill in the morning; we are on our own. A total of 71 patients are on oxygen support,” he said.

Officials at the 210-bed Mata Chanan Devi Hospital sent an SOS to the Delhi government as their “oxygen supplier didn’t fulfil commitments”.

“Around 40 patients are in ICU. We got 500kg oxygen last night. The supplier was supposed to give more at 4am, but they have not been picking up calls since then,” ICU head Dr A.C. Shukla said.

“With the Delhi government’s intervention, we have got 21 D-type cylinders, but a continuous supply is needed. The situation is very serious,” he added.

Dr Pankaj Solanki, who runs the 50-bed Dharamveer Solanki Hospital, said the hospital is using the “backup”, which will last till Thursday afternoon.

Dr Solanki said he had informed officials concerned to transfer out 30 patients.

“The oxygen crisis is at its worst. It is adding more pressure on the functioning. No one is able to help,” his tweet read.

Meanwhile, some hospitals received fresh stock overnight and more is likely to come in soon.

Dr Suresh Kumar, the medical director at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital, said three tankers carrying oxygen reached the facility last night.

“At 8.30am, we have around eight hours of oxygen left. More is coming,” he told PTI.

An official at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital said supply was replenished around 6am.

“The stock will last till 10am on Friday. Supply from a private vendor is awaited,” he said.

Officials at the Burari Hospital said they have “sufficient stock” till afternoon.

A spokesperson for St Stephen’s Hospital said they received fresh supply on Wednesday evening and the stock can last till 4pm.

“More to come around noon,” he added.

Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia alleged the Uttar Pradesh and Haryana police were blocking oxygen transport to Delhi, and urged the Centre to ensure normal supply even if that meant taking the help of paramilitary forces.

This “jungle raj” has been going on for three days, he said referring to the alleged blocking of oxygen supply.

“Some hospitals in Delhi have run out of oxygen completely. They don’t have any option available. I have been receiving calls, messages, emails. We have been making internal, makeshift arrangements, but this cannot continue for long,” he said.

Sisodia, who is also the nodal minister for Covid-19 management in Delhi, said it will become tough to save lives of coronavirus patients after sometime if hospitals did not get the oxygen supply they need.

“The Centre should take the help of paramilitary forces, if needed, and ensure supply of oxygen to Delhi,” he said, adding that else the situation may become “very dangerous” in days to come.

Delhi logged 24,638 coronavirus cases and 249 deaths on Wednesday, as the positivity rate stood at 31.28 per cent — meaning almost every third sample turned out to be positive — amid a growing clamour for oxygen and hospital beds in the city.

Only 16 ICU beds for Covid-19 patients were available in hospitals across Delhi at 3pm, according to government data.

On Tuesday, the city had recorded 28,395 cases and 277 fatalities, both highest since the pandemic began ravaging countries. The positivity rate was 32.82 per cent, highest so far.

The national capital has reported over 1,350 deaths due to the deadly virus in the last seven days.