Maharashtra seeks IAF help for transporting oxygen supplies to state

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday said that he has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow the Indian Air Force to transport oxygen to Maharashtra, which is right now grappling with a serious medical crisis in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thackeray said Maharashtra had the capacity to produce 1200 metric tonnes of oxygen daily, and that close to 1100 tonnes were being used daily. At present all the oxygen being produced in the state is being used for treating COVID-19 patients.

He said transporting oxygen from far-flung states would be time-consuming and hence the support of the Indian Air Force was critical.

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Government has announced a 15-day long statewide curfew from April 14 amid the spike in coronavirus cases in the state.

The curfew, which excludes essential services, will come into effect from 8 pm on Wednesday, CM Thackeray said in his address via social media to people of the state.

Section 144 (prohibitory orders) of the Criminal Procedure Code will be in force till the "lockdown-like" restrictions are in place, Thackeray said.

He refrained from terming the new curbs as a lockdown.

"The war against coronavirus has begun once again," he said. There is a severe strain on Maharashtra's health infrastructure due to the spike in COVID-19 cases," he added.

The state government will provide three kg wheat and two kg rice free for the next one month to every poor and needy person while the coronavirus-induced restrictions are in place, Thackeray said.