Steel companies supply 56,446 tonne medical oxygen for COVID-19 treatment: Steel Ministry

NEW DELHI: Steel companies have supplied 56,446.245 tonnes of medical oxygen from their integrated plants to various hospitals across the country till October-end, the Ministry of Steel has said. To aid the supply of oxygen in the country, Union Minister of Steel Dharmendra Pradhan in September had directed steel plants to start supplying liquid medical oxygen (LMO), which is a crucial medical requirement for a coronavirus patient.

The steel ministry had also made operational a portal wherein plant-wise information regarding availability of oxygen and daily supply by various plants and states to which such supplies have been made is provided. "Integrated steel plants (ISPs) in the public and private sector have been supplying LMO to meet the requirement of oxygen in hospitals across the country. 56,446.245 MT (metric tonne) LMO was supplied by steel plants to various states during the period from September 11, 2020 to October 31, 2020," the ministry said in an update. However, the ministry did not provide names of plants and companies that are engaged in work of supplying oxygen.

According to the statement, 37,364 tonne LMO was supplied by private sector units and 19,081.47 tonne by Steel CPSEs. Majority supply was made to three states of Karnataka (14,251.9 tonne), Andhra Pradesh (7,467 tonne) and Maharashtra (7,332.6 MT). This contribution is in addition to what the steel plants made in jointly fighting the COVID-19 spread in the country.

Major steel companies like SAIL, RINL, JSPL, JSW Steel and Tata Steel had set up isolation wards, distributed food packets, masks, hand sanitizers and offered other medical assistance to the communities living near their facilities and offices in various states.

According to official data, steel PSUs alone contributed over Rs 250 crore towards the PM-CARES Fund to combat the coronavirus pandemic.