The Indian Defense Ministry's research and development wing said on Wednesday it will employ military technology used on Tejas fighter jets to produce 500 devices generating medical oxygen for COVID-19 hospitals within the next three months
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th April, 2021) The Indian Defense Ministry's research and development wing said on Wednesday it will employ military technology used on Tejas fighter jets to produce 500 devices generating medical oxygen for COVID-19 hospitals within the next three months.
Indian hospitals have decried severe shortage of ventilator oxygen as COVID-19 cases continue to skyrocket. Last week, the government had to ban the use of oxygen for non-medical purposes.
"The DRDO has initiated fabrication of 380 numbers of Medical Oxygen Plants with release of Supply Orders for 332 numbers on M/s Tata Advanced Systems Limited, Bengaluru and 48 numbers on M/s Trident Pneumatics Pvt. Ltd., Coimbatore with a target of producing 125 plants per month under PM CARES Fund. With this it is expected that 500 Medical Oxygen Plants will be installed within three months," the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said.
The generated oxygen, with concentration up to 96%, can then be supplied either directly to hospital beds or stored in cylinders, according to the statement.
Each device will have a capacity of 1,000 liters (264 gallons) per minute, enough to cater to 190 patients at a flow rate of 5 liters per minute and charge 195 cylinders per day, the agency said.
India has the second-highest COVID-19 toll in the world after the United States, having so far registered nearly 18 million cases and over 201,000 deaths.
