New Delhi: A plea has been moved in the Supreme Court seeking directions to utilise PM Cares Fund for the purpose of installation of oxygen plants, procurement of Covid-19 vaccines and other essential equipment at 738 district hospitals across the country.
The plea added that it was already announced on April 25 that PM Cares Fund would allocate money to set up 551 oxygen plants using pressure swing adsorption at public health facilities.
The plea has been filed by advocate Viplava Sharma also urged the top court to issue directions to the states/UTs to ensure that all the private/charitable hospitals within their jurisdiction to procure, installed and commissioned the subject medical plant with essential backups and thereby, have become self-sufficient in having more than adequate inhouse basic and essential life support service of medical oxygen within the shortest possible time.
The petitioner also sought a stay on April 24 notification issued by the Centre to the extent it capped the exemption from import duty granted to medical equipment, for a period of three months.
The plea said: “Three-month time period is too short a period from the standpoint of logistics involved in importing these highly sophisticated medical equipment in India by over 300 concerned notable hospitals throughout the country.”
“Pass appropriate urgent directions to the respondents to ensure forthwith setting up of electric and all other kinds of crematoriums in all cities within their respective administration and also they also forthwith undertake to maintain/improve the existing electric crematoriums all of which have been used much beyond their respective capacities and may soon get non-functional”, added the plea.
The plea also asked the top court to direct states to set up electric and other crematoriums in all cities and additionally, maintain and improve the condition of existing facilities.
The plea urged the top court to issue directions to Centre and states to take urgent and effective measures suggested in the present petition so as to ensure governments forthwith aptly and successfully combat second wave of pandemic disease of Covid-19 and also effectively resolve the serious impact and disastrous repercussions that had instantly emerged countrywide owing to lack of medical oxygen in all the hospitals throughout the country.
The plea also urged that the MPs and MLAs of all states should be directed to spend their MP/MLA funds in a disciplined manner with full transparency.