The Indian Railways, which has carried 150 tonnes of liquid medical oxygen (LMO) so far to Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh with its Oxygen Express, will ferry another 145-150 tonnes to Lucknow.

Suneet Sharma, Railway Board Chairman and CEO, at a virtual press meet on Sunday, said: “We are also planning oxygen trains for Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi.” The Railways is expected to move four tankers from a Jindal plant in Raigarh for Delhi on Sunday night.

Route mapping

“Our attempt is to ensure maximum availability of guards, drivers, pointsmen, who are ensuring availability of services,” said Sharma.

“We are asking zones to map the shortest possible routes that connect to steel plants,” said Sharma. The route mapping is required given constraints of low height fixed structures (Road Over Bridges) and Over Head Equipment.

The Railways, which is moving oxygen special trains through circuitous routes due to technical reasons, will continue to provide its passenger and freight services based on demand, and will leave no stone unturned in reviving the economy, according to Sharma.

Passenger trains

Trains will be run per demand, said Sharma adding that several States are asking for negative RT-PCR reports and some for vaccination certificates.

Protecting frontline staff

Stating that the Railways is taking steps to protect frontline employees and make as many of them available as possible, Sharma said it has changed local protocols, attendance norms and processes for operations staff. The Railways has also asked its staff to go for vaccination early, with May 1 being the date from which people below 45 can get the jab.

Regarding Covid-19 care coaches, the Railways has also started getting demands from places in Punjab and M.P.

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