A tempo carrying seven oxygen cylinders meant for hospitals amid the coronavirus outbreak was stolen in Pune's Chakan area, police said on Sunday.
The complainant has a business of transporting such cylinders and he had parked his tempo outside his house on Thursday night from where it went missing a few hours later, Inspector Balaji Sontake of Mhalunge post said.
"We have registered a theft case and efforts are on to trace the tempo and nab the accused who stole it," said the official.
There is a high demand for oxygen in hospitals due to the coronavirus outbreak and the district administration here has even formed dedicated teams to oversee and coordinate supply between oxygen manufacturing units and medical facilities.
Adequate oxygen support, along with anti-coagulants and other medicines, is the mainstay of COVID-19 therapy and medical oxygen is listed as an Essential Public Health Commodity by the government.
Meanwhile, As per the update by Pune Municipal Corporation Mayor Murlidhar Mohol, the COVID-19 case count in the city rose by 1,978 to 1,19,657 on Sunday.
With 45 people succumbing to the infection, the death toll went up to 2,793.
A total of 1,587 patients were discharged during the day, taking the number of active cases to 17,788.
As per the update, 99,076 people have recovered/discharged from the disease as of now.
With 6,770 tests conducted on Sunday, a total number of tests conducted reached to 5,34,645.
(With inputs from PTI)
