India delivered 200 tonnes of liquid oxygen to Bangladesh by train today, dubbed the “Oxygen Express,” to help Dhaka cope with the increasing coronavirus situation. This was New Delhi’s first delivery to any neighbouring country.
The ‘Oxygen Express,’ an emergency railway service delivering liquid oxygen that was launched by Indian railways on April 24th, arrived in Sirajganj this morning with 10 containers packed with liquid medical oxygen (LMO) via Benapole land port.
According to an Indian Press Information Bureau press release distributed by the Indian High Commission in Dhaka, 480 Oxygen Expresses have been operationalized in India so far.
“Oxygen is being imported by the railway for the first time through the land port…customs related activities of the imported oxygen have been completed putting highest priority on corona treatment,” said Azizur Rahman, commissioner of Benapole Customs House.
According to Department of Health Services sources, 200 tonnes of Indian oxygen will be carried to Dhaka via lorry after being unloaded at the country’s western railway station Sirajganj.
On Saturday morning, an Indian train carrying ten containers of oxygen left Jamshedpur Tatanagar in the Jharkhand district towards Bangladesh.
Last night, the train arrived in Bangladesh by land port, according to the Indian Press Information Bureau.
The hospitals would be provided with oxygen for the treatment of corona patients.
The oxygen express, which was launched by the Indian railways to address the oxygen issue in several states throughout the country, has so far delivered 36,841 tonnes of liquid oxygen to hospitals.
