New Delhi: The Centre on Saturday invited bids for procurement of medical oxygen cylinders on an urgent basis to tackle the Covid-19 situation. The Central Medical Services Society (CMSS), a procurement agency under the Union Health Ministry, made the bid and expression of interest (EOI) invitation public.
The bid document included technical specifications of the cylinders, commercial terms and the price bidding format.
However, the CMSS did not specify the exact requirement of the medical oxygen cylinders in the document.
It stated that the government would pay 100% amount once the manufacturing is completed and the bidder submits the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organization (PESO) certificates. PESO is a licensing authority for plants that produce medical oxygen.
The unhindered supply of medical oxygen is crucial in tackling coronavirus as critical patients require ventilator support. Patients with severe Covid-19 symptoms develop acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and need oxygen supply for survival.
Earlier this month, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) asked states to ensure unrestricted supply of medical oxygen as it is included in the national and World Health Organisation’s list of essential medicines.
The Home ministry also said that the function of manufacturing units of medical oxygen and allied services and their transportation should be allowed smoothly.
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