When the going gets tough the tough gets going. The old saying validated itself yet again on the early morning of May 12, 2021, when the nightmare started unfolding in the Purnia district of Bihar. The only oxygen manufacturing plant in the region had stopped suddenly and at stake were the lives of 250 Covid19 patients. Spread out in 13 hospitals of Purnia, they were on critical oxygen support, and 40 of them were on ventilators.
Panic Sets In
Time was running out for the patients. Every minute counted. Without fresh oxygen coming, a certain death awaited the patients. At the most, they could survive for a few hours only. These were the nerve racking moments when the district magistrate of Purnia, Mr Rahul Kumar, came to the driving seat and prevented the catastrophe, in the process saving the lives of the 250 people in dire need of oxygen.
Speaking with Indian Masterminds, Mr Kumar recalled those horror filled moments and what all he and his team did to avert the tragedy.
Mr Kumar adopted a multi-pronged strategy: as important procuring oxygen for the Covid patients was stopping the panic which had spread uncontrollably, mainly through social media, in every nook and corner of Purnia. As a first step after getting down to business, the district magistrate set up a “war room’’ in the Sadar Hospital.
“Setting up a war room was very important,’’ said Mr Kumar, explaining further: “because it’s from here that you can work in a cool and composed manner and stop panic from setting in.’’
Working on War Footing
Mr Kumar then started working for a solution with a cool head. He immediately sent out SOS messages to his colleagues and officials in the neighboring districts, seeking urgent supply of oxygen. At the same time, he urged the local people of Purnia to hand over their unused oxygen cylinders to save the lives of the needy patients.
Soon thereafter, help started pouring in. But it was still not sufficient to take care of all the patients. Mr Kumar then doubled his efforts. At the same time, he had another big task on his hands: to stop the spread of rumor mongering in Purnia.
Mr Rahul’s perseverance worked, and helped started pouring in from different quarters. The director of Mata Gujari Memorial Medical College in Kishanganj, Mr Dilip Jaiswal rushed the first batch of 10 cylinders and then 30 jumbo cylinders to Purnia. Supplies also started arriving from Katihar, Kishanganj and Supaul.
First Stab at the Unseen Enemy
Through his efforts, Mr Kumar also arranged 100 more cylinders. He had made a first stab the unseen adversary. The march of death was stopped at the doorsteps of Purnia hospital, but a lot more needed to be done. After all, a civil servant also needs to be aware of the big picture.
It goes to the credit of Mr Kumar that the only oxygen manufacturing plant of Purnia, now lying malfunctioned, was put in a running condition within 8 hours!
Mr Kumar’s efforts and success in saving so many lives are being lauded by many people.
Looking back at those hours of unimaginable tension when lives of 250 people hung by a thin thread, Mr Kumar told Indian Masterminds, “The most important thing is to identify the shape, size and level of the crisis and respond accordingly. Some hospitals had an oxygen supply for one hour, while supply in few others was only for 15 minutes. So we prioritized our response. In such situation it’s important not to lose our temper and remain cool, collected and composed. There was already so much of panic outside the control room. If we had let that panic seep in our control room, we would have been staring at disaster. But thanks to the help from DMs of bordering districts, the well meaning people of Purnia and my own team members, we stopped the disaster.’’
Mr Kumar did more than that. He showed, through his actions, how to respond properly to life threatening prospects.
