Govt invokes DM Act for free passage of Oxygen inter-state amid Covid-19 crisis

The central government on Thursday invoked the Disaster Management Act amid reports of oxygen hoarding or stalling of supply to other states coming from across the country.  

The Ministry of Home Affairs order stated that under the DM Act no state can hold up supplies of oxygen to another state. The order reads, “no restriction shall be imposed on the movement of medical oxygen between the States and transport, authorities shall be instructed to accordingly allow free inter-state movement of oxygen-carrying vehicles.” 

The country has been facing an acute shortage of Oxygen to the sickest covid patients in the country. The second wave of the coronavirus has surged day-by-day with over 3 lakh cases being reported in the last 24-hour across the country.  

The Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla in the order also made clear that no restrictions could be imposed on “oxygen manufacturers and suppliers to limit the oxygen supplies only to the hospitals of the State/ UT in which they are located”. 

“There shall be free movement of oxygen-carrying vehicles into the cities, without any restriction of timings, while also enabling inter-city supply without any restriction. No authority shall attach the oxygen carrying vehicles passing through the district or areas for making supplies specific to any particular district(s) or area. …States/UTs shall strictly abide by the supply plan of medical oxygen prepared by EG II (Empowered Group II) and as revised from time-to-time,” the order said; 

Moreover, the order has to be followed and implemented by the district magistrates and senior superintendents of police and SPs mentioning that they would be “personally liable”. 

Anyone refusing to comply with orders, under Section 51 of the DM Act, is liable for punishment with imprisonment up to one year, or fine, or both. The person liable shall be punished with imprisonment up to two years in case of refusal leads to the death of people. 

Reiterating that industrial oxygen should be diverted for medical purposes to meet the demand, the MHA, in its order, made clear that states have to follow the supply plan made by the EG-II for the supply of oxygen to each state according to its requirement. This order has been drafted after consultation with the state governments and is revised from time to time based on requirements.  

“Due to rapid rise in COVID-19 cases and with increasing case positivity rate, various States/UTs have imposed some additional restrictions on certain activities and weekend lockdowns/curfews etc… the availability of adequate and uninterrupted supply of Medical Oxygen is an important pre-requisite for managing moderate and severe cases of COVID-19 and with the increasing cases, the medical oxygen supply will need to keep pace with the requirements of the States/ UTs,” the order read.