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Our Correspondent
Kohima, May 17 (EMN): The much-awaited pressure swing absorption (PSA) oxygen generation plant at Naga Hospital Authority Kohima (NHAK) is finally operational after minister of Health and Family Welfare, S Pangnyu Phom inaugurated the facility on Monday.
It came two days after this newspaper reported about the medical oxygen sample from the facility being given “fit for use” tag with 90-96% purity by a certification laboratory.
"This is a significant day for the people of the state whereby the first PSA oxygen generation plant is being inaugurated at NHAK," Phom said at the event.
Explaining that the plant separates oxygen from the normal compressed air which can produce round the clock uninterrupted supply of oxygen, the minister said "the hospital will be supplied straight to the site of use through the medical gas pipelines”. "As the country and Nagaland in particular battles the increase in the Covid cases and the subsequent increase in the oxygen requirements, this plant will help ease the oxygen demands of the hospital," Phom said.
He added three PSA plants at NHAK, District Hospital Dimapur and Dr. Imkongliba Memorial District Hospital, Mokokchung were allocated under PM Cares Fund.
Phom informed that samples from the plant at NHAK, which has the capacity to generate 300 litre per minute (LPM) of oxygen, were collected after the installation and sent to Fare Labs in Gurgaon. While the subsequent test sample purity of medical oxygen stood at 95.37%, which conforms to the standard quality, he said the plant was declared "fit to use for medical purposes".
He also informed that the installation work of a 200 LPM oxygen plant at District Hospital Dimapur has been completed while its sample test result is being awaited and installation work of another 200 LPM oxygen plant at the district hospital in Mokokchung is underway.
The minister went on to inform that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is supporting the oxygen plants that will be set up at district hospitals in Tuensang and Phek, while the ones in Mon, Zunheboto, Wokha, Peren Kiphire and Longleng will be supported by United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF).
Infrastructure work in all these eight district hospitals has been initiated, after which the oxygen plants will be installed and commissioned, he added.
Phom revealed that a proposal has been made to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for a PSA oxygen generation plant in Noklak district and two more plants of 1000 LPM for NHAK and Christian Institute of Health Sciences and Research (CIHSR) in Dimapur to augment the surge of Covid positive cases in the state.
He added that the state is expecting a positive response from the Centre for its proposal.
‘After PSA plants are installed in all the district hospitals, and oxygen concentrators and cylinders distributed, the oxygen requirement to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic should be enough,’ he said while acknowledging the Union Health ministry, UNDP and UNICEF for their generous contributions.
Nilanjan Choudhury, Service Engineer from Delhi-based Absstem Technologies told Eastern Mirror that the oxygen plant at NHAK will be able to produce 4,32, 000 litres of oxygen a day.
"Naga Hospital (NHAK) is not going to have any issue about the oxygen; every patient can get the same oxygen," he said.
Regarding operation of PSA oxygen plant, the engineer informed that two compressors draw the atmospheric air while air dryer separates the moisture before the dried air is sent to air receiver following which the receiver sends the air to the PSA oxygen plant through filters.
The PSA plant then separates the nitrogen and other gases from the oxygen, which then goes through the storage tanks before being sent to the hospital manifolds.
From the manifolds, the hospital distributes the oxygen to patients.
A generator and UPS has been connected to the oxygen plant in the event of any power outage.