New Delhi, Apr 24 (IANS): Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Saturday visited the Sardar Patel Covid Care Centre (SPCCC) in Chhatarpur here and oversaw the preparations for the reopening of the centre with the addition of 500 oxygenated beds.

The Centre and the Delhi government are together re-operationalising the Covid care centre in the national capital with 500 oxygenated beds within a few days to cater to the growing demand for beds amid the raging second wave of the pandemic. The centre was closed on February 23, 2021.

The Centre has designated the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) as the nodal force for operating the facility.

The Union Health Ministry said in a statement that the present facility would heavily ease the burden on Delhi's existing health infrastructure to deal with the unprecedented surge in new Covid cases.

"As during last year, the Centre is working through a 'Whole of Government' approach where we are pooling all resources to ramp up three categories of infrastructure for effective management of Covid," Harsh Vardhan said.

The minister visited the Covie care centre to oversee its re-operationalisation through the addition of 500 oxygen supported beds.

He also reviewed the status of Covid management at the Centre.

Harsh Vardhan was informed that the Covid care centre's capacity will be augmented to 1,000 in another week, before finally increasing it to 2,000 beds.

The centre in Chhatarpur is being adequately equipped with the necessary medical facilities, which include 10 dedicated basic care life support ambulances, X-Ray machines and oxygen cylinders, among others.

At the healthcare facility, in-house psychological counselling and psychiatry services will be provided by trained counsellors.

Telemedicine support will also be provided by the Referral Hospital, ITBP.

The ITBP has already dispatched a team of 40 qualified doctors who would be joined by a team of 120 expert paramedics. The facility is expected to be operational by Sunday.