The Energy Department has attached due priority to supplying power to oxygen plants, which have become the lifeline for the COVID-19 patients.
Nodal officers, not less than the rank of an executive engineer, have been posted in-charge of each one of the 22 oxygen plants (three of them are major units located in Visakhapatnam city and Srikakulam district) in the purview of the three Discoms with a demand of 2,49,196 KVA.
“By doing so, continuous power supply is ensured,” Energy Secretary N. Srikant said in a review meeting on Friday.
Taking stock of the power supply to hospitals and oxygen plants, and also the domestic sector, Mr. Srikant appreciated the employees for being on the frontline in the war against COVID-19 and rendering efficient services round the clock.
He said senior officers were visiting the districts to personally monitor the power supply, and pointed out that more than 1,400 officers and staff had contracted the virus.
Nodal officers were appointed to meet the requirements of employees infected by the virus.
Mr. Srikant said the Government of India took steps to ensure 24x7 power supply to 73 oxygen plants in the country. In tune with it, the AP Discosms turned their attention to power supply to oxygen plants in the State.
Discoms’ CMDs S. Naga Lakshmi, H. Haranatha Rao and J. Padma Janardhan Reddy explained the steps taken for uninterrupted power supply to all the sectors, especially hospitals and oxygen plants.
“In case of breakdowns, alternative arrangements have been made for power supply to the hospitals and oxygen plants,” they said.
AP-Transco Joint Managing Directors K. Sridhar Reddy and K. Venkateswarlu, and Directors K. Praveen Kumar and Muthupandian took part in the deliberations.
