SC sets up National Task Force to assess country-wide oxygen distribution amid Covid-19

Amid oxygen supply crisis in the wake of novel coronavirus cases in the country, a Supreme Court bench, headed by Justice DY Chandrachud, in its order, constituted a National Task Force (NTF) to assess, recommend the need and distribution of oxygen for the entire country, reported news agency ANI.

The task force, which has medical experts and doctors from across the country as its members, will have Cabinet Secretary to the Union Government as its convenor.

As per the details, this task force will be specifically addressing issues relating to streamlining oxygen allocation to different states, reviewing and suggesting measures to ensure availability of essential drugs and medicines, and adopting remedial measures to ensure preparedness for future emergencies.

The Supreme Court in its order said that the National Task Force members will be

1)Dr Bhabatosh Biswas, Former Vice-Chancellor, West Bengal University of Health Sciences, Kolkata

2)Dr Devender Singh Rana, Chairperson, Board of Management, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi

3)Dr Devi Prasad Shetty, Chairperson and Executive Director, Narayana Healthcare, Bengaluru

4) Dr Gagandeep Kang, Professor, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu,

5) Dr JV Peter, Director, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu

6) Dr Naresh Trehan, Chairperson and Managing Director, Medanta Hospital and Heart Institute, Gurugram

7) Dr Rahul Pandit, Director, Critical Care Medicine and ICU, Fortis Hospital, Mulund (Mumbai, Maharashtra) and Kalyan (Maharashtra)

8) Dr Saumitra Rawat, Chairman & Head, Department of Surgical Gastroenterology and Liver Transplant, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi

9) Dr Shiv Kumar Sarin, Senior Professor and Head of Department of Hepatology, Director, Institute of Liver and Biliary Science (ILBS), Delhi

10) Dr Zarir F Udwadia, Consultant Chest Physician, Hinduja Hospital, Breach Candy Hospital and Parsee General Hospital, Mumbai

11) Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India (ex officio member)

India reported a slight dip in new coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours with 4,01,078 more people testing positive. The cumulative caseload in the country now stands at 2,18,92,676, said the Union health ministry on Saturday morning.

However, the daily fatalities are continuing to show an upwards trend. As many as 4,187 more people succumbed to the disease in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative death toll to 2,38,270.

This is the first time the country has reported over 4,000 deaths.

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