As several states in India are facing oxygen shortage to save the lives of Covid patients, the honorable Supreme Court of India has now interfered and has set up a National Task Force to streamline oxygen supply across the nation.
National Task Force to streamline oxygen supply
According to a report published in the Bar and Bench, the Apex court in the nation stated that "an effective and transparent mechanism is needed to be set up within the Union Government for the purpose of allocating medical oxygen to all States and Union Territories."
The National Task Force set up by the Supreme Court will be comprised of members mentioned below.
(i) Dr. Bhabatosh Biswas, Former Vice-Chancellor, West Bengal University of Health Sciences, Kolkata
(ii) Dr. Devender Singh Rana, Chairperson, Board of Management, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi
(iii) Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty, Chairperson, and Executive Director, Narayana Healthcare, Bengaluru
(iv) Dr. Gagandeep Kang, Professor, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu
(v) Dr. JV Peter, Director, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu
(vi) Dr. Naresh Trehan, Chairperson and Managing Director, Medanta Hospital and Heart Institute, Gurugram
(vii) Dr. Rahul Pandit, Director, Critical Care Medicine and ICU, Fortis Hospital, Mulund (Mumbai, Maharashtra) and Kalyan (Maharashtra)
(viii) Dr. Saumitra Rawat, Chairman & Head, Department of Surgical Gastroenterology and Liver Transplant, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi
(ix) Dr. Shiv Kumar Sarin, Senior Professor and Head of Department of Hepatology, Director, Institute of Liver and Biliary Science (ILBS), Delhi
(x) Dr. Zarir F Udwadia, Consultant Chest Physician, Hinduja Hospital, Breach Candy Hospital and Parsee General Hospital, Mumbai;
(xi) Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India (ex officio member)
(xii) The Convenor of the National Task Force, who shall also be a member, will be the Cabinet Secretary to the Union Government.
Need of Coronavirus National Task Force in India
The Supreme Court noted that the National Task Force is being formed to facilitate a public health response to the pandemic based on scientific and specialized domain knowledge. The top court also urged medical experts in the country to associate with the work of the Task Force. The Task Force will make sure that medical oxygen is allocated to states and union territories on a scientific, rational and equitable basis.
The decision of the Supreme Court to form a National Task Force at a time when the nation is witnessing a sudden surge in Covid-related deaths. On May 07, the country witnessed 4,187 coronavirus deaths, an all-time high since the outbreak of the pandemic. The number of positive cases in the country was also over 4,00,000 yesterday.
