On Monday, officials said, oxygen cylinders had been delivered through this initiative to around 70 homes.
Around 20 NGOs, more than 100 volunteers, and two professional delivery services will be working with the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) and the District Red Cross Society in the coming days to facilitate the delivery of oxygen cylinders to the doorsteps of patients in home isolation.
According to officials, the two delivery services roped in for the initiative are Zomato and Delhivery.
“Different teams have been given this responsibility in different zones of the MCG. While Zomato will handle delivery in one zone and Delhivery in another, teams of the MCG and Seva Bharati Parishad will be handling this responsibility in the two remaining zones. Apart from this, if oxygen is needed in any area beyond MCG limits, teams of the MCG will handle this task. The initiative will operate on a first come first serve basis,” said Jitendra Yadav, Commissioner of the MCG.
“A separate bank account will be opened for payment under this arrangement. The payment will be made directly to the bank account through a QR Code. Every agency will have a different QR code,” he said.
On Monday, officials said, oxygen cylinders had been delivered through this initiative to around 70 homes. Officials said a cylinder bank has been set for cylinder refilling by the district administration. At the time of delivery of the oxygen, the team takes a filled oxygen cylinder and gives it to the applicant, returning with any empty cylinder they may have.
“As a result of this initiative, the load of beds in hospitals will be reduced and people will get facilities at their homes itself,” said Yadav.
It was on Saturday that the District Administration announced a door-to-door service would be started for delivery of oxygen cylinders in Gurgaon, wherein patients or their attendants would have to register for cylinders through a web portal, which would then be delivered to their doorstep.
Officials expect that, apart from reducing pressure on hospitals and making more beds available for seriously infected patients, this will also help clamp down on black marketing of oxygen cylinders, and, in addition, will also benefit people suffering from illnesses other than Covid, who may require oxygen.
