The government is all set to bring the much-needed health equipment and oxygen cylinders from Beijing, China within a couple of days. The government is planning to import 400 oxygen cylinders from China in the first phase.
A meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinator of COVID Crisis Management Centre Ishwar Pokhrel on Friday had decided to bring 400 empty oxygen cylinders, out of 20,000, in the first phase, DPM’s personal secretariat informed.
A wide-body aircraft of Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) is flying to Beijing on Monday to bring 10 sets of ventilators and 400 oxygen cylinders, provided in grant by the Chinese government. Talking with The Rising Nepal, General Manager of NAC Dim Prakash Poudel said, “A wide-body, A 330 of the NAC, will fly to Beijing at 11:30 pm on Monday to get 400 oxygen
cylinders and 10 ventilators.”
The national flag carrier will arrive at Tribhuvan International Airport at 2:30 pm on Tuesday, he added.
According to Poudel, the wide-body cannot carry more than 400 oxygen gas cylinders.
He further added that though the Chinese government was to provide 20 units of ventilators in the first phase, they were only providing 10 units this time. At the request of the Ministry of Health and Population, NAC is sending a wide-body to Beijing to get the much-needed health equipment and oxygen cylinders, said Poudel. The government of China has pledged to provide 20,000 oxygen cylinders to Nepal as a support to combat the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic.
The government is preparing to bring the medical goods by air and land routes, DPM’s personal secretariat said.
An additional 1,600 cylinders will be brought to Nepal by air while 18,000 cylinders will be brought via land routes, said DPM’s press advisor Ganesh Pandey.
Source : THE RISING NEPAL,
