Punjab to install 75 more oxygen plants by July-end

Chandigarh, June 27

The Punjab government will install 75 more oxygen plants in the state by July-end, boosting the supply of the life-saving gas ahead of a possible third Covid wave, Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan said on Sunday.

Mahajan said all relevant departments have been asked to complete the installation of pressure swing adsorption (PSA) plants by July-end, ensuring pressure and purity of oxygen.

With this, the demand for medical oxygen will be met at all healthcare institutes in Punjab, she said in an official statement after chairing a high-level meeting to review the installation of the PSA plants and allied works.

Mahajan asked the relevant officials to ensure the completion of all pre-activities for the installation of PSA plants by July 15 so that work of installation and commissioning is completed by July 25.

During the meeting, Principal Secretary (Water Supply and Sanitation) Jaspreet Talwar, who heads the State Oxygen Management Group, told Mahajan that Punjab has two PSA plants, with a capacity of 1,400-litre per minute (LPM) each in Ludhiana and Jalandhar.

While 42 plants have been allotted by the Centre, mainly for medical colleges and district hospitals in the state, another 33 plants have been arranged by various agencies and private bodies in the state.

This will add to the state capacity of generating medical oxygen by more than 50 metric tonnes (MT) per day, she added.

A pressure swing adsorption plant utilises the phenomena of some gases getting attracted to or “adsorbed” to particular solid surfaces when passing by it under high pressure, an official said.

Owing to this phenomenon, when air is passed through a tank under high pressure, nitrogen in the air gets adsorbed on the tank’s internal surface made up of or coated with a layer of zeolite, and this results in the release of oxygen-rich air from the tank, serving the medical purpose, the official explained. PTI