Indian Railways’ first ‘Oxygen Express’ with seven empty tankers leaves for Vizag; details

The national transporter is running its first Oxygen Express in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The first ever Indian Railways’ Oxygen Express train left for Visakhapatnam carrying seven empty tankers. In Visakhapatnam, they will be loaded with liquid oxygen for transportation to the state of Maharashtra, the Central Railway zone said. The roll-on-roll-off (Ro-Ro) train with seven empty tankers left for the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant at 8.05 PM from Kalamboli goods yard, around 40 kilometres from here in Navi Mumbai, according to a PTI report. The tankers, at the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, will be loaded with liquid medical oxygen and brought to the state of Maharashtra, which is facing a shortage of the gas required for the treatment of critical COVID-19 positive patients.

Recently, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal had tweeted that the national transporter is running its first Oxygen Express in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ro-Ro service departed from Kalamboli, Maharashtra with seven empty tankers for Vizag today. The Indian Railways’ Oxygen Express will move via a green corridor for loading with Liquid Medical Oxygen, the minister stated. A ramp has been developed by the Central Railway zone’s Mumbai Division within 24 hours at Kalamboli goods yard in order to facilitate loading and unloading of tankers in/from flat wagons. According to sources quoted in the report, Maharashtra Transport Minister Anil Parab was present when the train left for Andhra Pradesh’s port city.

On Sunday, the national transporter had announced to transport liquid medical oxygen and oxygen cylinders across the country, it will operate ‘Oxygen Express’ over the next few days. Officials had said that empty tankers will be loaded with liquid medical oxygen under the initiative, from Jamshedpur, Visakhapatnam, Bokaro and Rourkela for supply all over the nation. Amid spiralling novel coronavirus cases in India, the demand for medical oxygen for treating COVID-19 patients in the country has gone through the roof, the report added.