Thousands dying daily as India faces oxygen shortage in hospitals

Thousands of people have died while expecting oxygen supplies, and the majority of intense care beds in Delhi hospitals are full. India is experiencing a massive second wave of Covid infections.

It has close to 16 million confirmed diseases and registered a record number of cases on Thursday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to hold discussions with the chief ministers of concerned states and oxygen producers on Friday.

In a tweet labelled "SOS" sent out on Friday morning, Max Healthcare said that it had been waiting for required fresh stocks for more than seven hours at two hospitals. It has 700 new patients admitted at the two facilities.

In recent days, many other clinics in Delhi had said they had either run out of oxygen, or their numbers were declining rapidly. Three other states - Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana - are also facing a critical shortage of oxygen, while other states like Maharashtra are also seeing depleting supplies.

On Thursday, India reported the highest one-day tally of new cases anywhere in the world. There were 314,835 new coronavirus cases during the last 24 hours, while deaths rose by 2,104.

"A lot of people are reliant on oxygen, and without oxygen, these people will die just like fish die in the lack of water," he said. "This is a time for all to come collectively to work."

Delhi is known to have the best healthcare facilities in India, but it has been taken to its knees by the most notable surge in cases, says BBC India correspondent Yogita Limaye.

Families are also serving hours to perform funeral rites, Reuters news agency shots, with at least one Delhi crematorium resorting to establishing pyres in its car park in order to cope with the numbers arriving. Crematoriums are holding mass burials and fighting day and night in some cities.