Authorities confident once these generation plants are set up there would not be any issues with respect to transport and storage of oxygen. — Representational image/PTI Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to set up pressure swing absorption-based oxygen generation plants in 49 district/area hospitals at a cost of Rs 309 crore. Principal Secretary (Health) Anil Kumar Singhal told media persons here on Friday that based on the number of beds available in each hospital they would set up such plants and sounded confident that the plants would become operational within three months. Singhal expressed confidence that once the plants were set up there would not be any issues with respect to transport and storage of oxygen. He said administrative sanction was given for setting up such plants on a permanent basis and out of the allotted Rs 309 crore the government would spend Rs 180 crore on plants Rs 25 crore for civil works and Rs 50 crore for laying 10000 additional oxygen pipelines. He also informed that out of 50 cryogenic tankers planned to be procured orders were placed for purchase of 25 tankers. It would cost Rs 45 crore for purchase of the tankers. On the Covid-19 vaccination the senior official stated that so far AP received 7349960 doses. A total of 5358712 persons were given the first dose while 1796000 were given the second dose taking the total number of doses given so far to 7155000. The official informed that the state government had sanctioned Rs 45 crore for purchase of 991000 doses of Covishield and 343000 doses of Covaxin and payments were already made for their procurement. Serum Institute of India conveyed that it would supply 3.5 lakh doses more than the allotted doses by the third week of May. With regard to Covaxin he said that out of allotted 343000 doses 143000 doses were received while two lakh more doses were yet to be received. Singhal said the government would give weightage to health workers working on temporary basis on Covid duty for recruitments in the health department which they had been asking for. A memo was issued to provide 15% weightage to the health workers who worked on Covid duty during the first wave of the pandemic. He assured to give an order shortly with details on modalities to give weightage to the health workers in recruitments.

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