Saudi Arabia sends oxygen to India to overcome acute shortage

The urgent supply shipment is being undertaken in coordination with India’s Adani group and Linde company. (Twitter: Indian Embassy Riyadh)
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Updated 26 April 2021
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Saudi Arabia sends oxygen to India to overcome acute shortage

  • Indian thanks Saudi Arabia 'for all its help, support and cooperation'
  • First shipment on its way from Dammam to Mundra in Gujarat

NEW DELHI: Saudi Arabia on Sunday shipped 80 metric tons of oxygen to India to alleviate acute shortages of the lifesaving gas due to the record surge in coronavirus infections in India.

On Sunday India reported almost 350,000 corona cases.

The Saudi supply of oxygen has been in cooperation with the Indian conglomerate, Adani Group, and the British chemical multinational, Linde.

“The Embassy of India is proud to partner with Adani Group and M/s Linde in shipping much-needed 80 metric tons of liquid oxygen to India”, the Indian Embassy in Riyadh tweeted on Sunday.

It thanked Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health “for all its help, support and cooperation.”

Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani tweeted: “The first shipment of 4 ISO cryogenic tanks with 80 tons of liquid oxygen is now on its way from Dammam (port in Saudi Arabia) to Mundra (port in western state of Gujarat).”

The second pandemic wave has hit India very hard and led to a daily surge of over 300,000 cases. Many Indian cities, including the capital New Delhi, have been overwhelmed by patients which has resulted in shortages of hospital beds and oxygen causing thousands of deaths throughout the country.

The shortage of oxygen in hospitals has led to the death of nearly 50 people in two hospitals in the capital since Thursday.

Delhi’s requirements come to 700 metric tons of oxygen per day but it is receiving only 380 which has forced many hospitals in the city to operate far below capacity.

“We have the capacity to accommodate 260 patients in the hospital but the irregular and uncertain supply of oxygen has forced us to under-utilize our capacity,” Dr. P.K. Bhardwaj, the  director of the Delhi-based Saroj multispeciality hospital, told Arab News.

The medical director of the central Delhi-based Moolchand Medcity Hospital, Dr. Sudha Handa, told Arab News it was “on tenterhooks all the time regarding the oxygen supply.”

The shortage has also been felt in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh which is the second worst affected state in India with over 37,000 cases on Sunday and over 200 fatalities. The western Indian state of Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state, is also reeling under an acute shortage of oxygen; hospitals in some of the state’s major cities have had to refuse patients who were in desperate need of both beds and oxygen.

To respond to the crisis, on Friday India launched an “oxygen maitri” or “oxygen friendship” operation to reach out to various countries in order to procure the lifesaving gas.

On Saturday, the Indian Air Force brought four cryogenic tanks to be used for transporting oxygen from Singapore.

The Indian Home Ministry on Friday said that it was in talks for the import of high-capacity oxygen-carrying tankers from Singapore and the UAE.

Former ambassador and international affairs expert, Anil Trigunayat, has expressed his appreciation for Saudi Arabia’s gesture toward India in crisis. “We greatly appreciate this friendly gesture from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” Trigunayat told Arab News.

“Saudi Arabia is a strategic partner of India and as a friend, it has risen to the occasion when India is experiencing an unprecedented surge in COVID-19 which has stressed India’s medical infrastructure because of a shortage in oxygen supplies,” he said.

“India also stands by all its friends in their times of crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic is one in which the world has to take a global stance which both Delhi and Riyadh worked on during the Saudi Presidency of the G20.”

 


Saudi aid agency KSrelief delivers food to needy

Updated 59 min 5 sec ago
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Saudi aid agency KSrelief delivers food to needy

  • The distribution is a part of the 2025 emergency food and clothing aid project in Lebanon

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s aid agency KSrelief has distributed 360 food packages to vulnerable individuals in Lebanon’s cities of Tripoli and Jbeil, benefiting 1,800 people.

The distribution is a part of the 2025 emergency food and clothing aid project in Lebanon, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the charity distributed 1,780 sacrificial animals in the Al-Madinah and Al-Wadi districts of Yemen’s Marib governorate on Sunday.

The initiative benefited 3,560 families under an Eid Al-Adha project in Yemen.


Newly appointed Saudi ambassador to Mexico presents his credentials

Updated 11 June 2025
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Newly appointed Saudi ambassador to Mexico presents his credentials

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s newly appointed ambassador to Mexico has presented his credentials to the North American state’s foreign ministry, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Fahad bin Ali Al-Manawer handed over a copy of his credentials to Ambassador Jonathan Chait Auerbach, the director general of protocol at the ministry, at a reception held on Tuesday. 
The diplomats also reviewed relations between their nations at the meeting.
Al-Manawer took his oath of office in from to the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in March, in a ceremony attended by the Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan.


Saudi FM attends Oslo Forum in Norway

Updated 10 June 2025
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Saudi FM attends Oslo Forum in Norway

  • Forum hosts global leaders and conflict mediators
  • Prince Faisal bin Farhan will meet foreign officials

RIYADH: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan arrived in the Norwegian capital on Tuesday to take part in the Oslo Forum.

The annual event, organized by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue in Switzerland, hosts global leaders and conflict mediators.

Prince Faisal will meet foreign officials to strengthen relations with the Kingdom and discuss various regional and international issues, the Saudi Press Agency reported.


What pilgrims are sharing online after their Hajj journey

Updated 10 June 2025
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What pilgrims are sharing online after their Hajj journey

  • Worshippers take to social media to share profound experiences with loved ones
  • Posting online becomes a way to process the weight of Hajj for many

RIYADH: For many pilgrims, the spiritual journey of Hajj does not end when they leave the holy sites. It continues — quietly, intentionally — in the days and weeks that follow.

Across Saudi Arabia, young pilgrims are using social media to process the weight of Hajj and share the experience with loved ones.

Noor Ahmad, 21, did not plan to post during her pilgrimage. But after she returned, the urge to share came naturally.

After returning from Hajj, I decided to share a few captured moments. But how can a photo truly capture the depth and majesty of the experience?

Noor Ahmad

“After returning from Hajj, I decided to share a few captured moments,” she said. “But how can a photo truly capture the depth and majesty of the experience?”

She described how people responded in varied ways. “Those who had gone before felt nostalgic and started sharing their own stories. Others — those who hadn’t been yet — expressed their longing. It became this moment of connection.”

For Noor, the decision to post was not about aesthetics. “It’s a monumental event. Maybe I could inspire someone who’s hesitant to go. Maybe they’ll see what I saw — and want to experience it for themselves.

“It was my way of saying thank you”

Shatha Al-Jadaan, 25, took a different approach to sharing, after taking a digital detox.

I enjoy sharing meaningful moments, and after seeing the tremendous effort put into Hajj on every level, I felt my post was a small, sincere gesture of appreciation.

Shatha Al-Jadaan

“During Hajj, I decided to partially fast from social media. I used only the essentials,” she said. “After I returned, I posted a thread to my close friends explaining where I’d been and shared some of the most meaningful moments.”

The response was full of prayers and warmth. “People were kind, supportive, and curious. But what mattered most to me was that I used the thread to say thank you — to the organizers, to the volunteers, and to Allah.”

She spoke about how she found value in using digital platforms to document something greater than herself.

“I enjoy sharing meaningful moments, and after seeing the tremendous effort put into Hajj on every level, I felt my post was a small, sincere gesture of appreciation.”

Salem Al-Khudair, 28, recorded a voice note to his family group chat while performing the rites.

“I just couldn’t find the words to write. So I recorded myself speaking right after standing in Arafat. I sent it to my family WhatsApp group. My mom was emotional. My dad said, ‘May God accept from you.’ That was enough.”

In an age of curated content, Hajj posts tend to stand out for their sincerity. Pilgrims often strip away the filters, metaphors and trend-driven formats, and just speak from the heart.

Noura Al-Dosari, 23, uploaded a private Instagram story highlight with no captions. “Just visuals. No filters. No hashtags,” she said. “It wasn’t for followers. It was for me. For reflection. A digital bookmark of who I became.”

Some write long captions, others simply post a photo of their ihram folded neatly back into a drawer.

But all of them carry a silent message: I went. I came back different.

Many pilgrims use their posts to recall moments of physical hardship that brought emotional breakthroughs — the heat, the long walks, the brief but powerful connections with strangers.

Others use it to highlight the seamless organization of the pilgrimage as a reminder of how far the experience has evolved.

Amani Al-Saad, 26, used X to share a short story about a volunteer who helped her carry her bag in Muzdalifah. “She didn’t speak much, but she smiled at me and said, ‘This is what we’re here for.’ That stuck with me. I wrote about it as a reminder to myself — that sometimes the smallest moments hold the most meaning.”

While digital connections are increasingly common, most pilgrims emphasize that the real processing happens offline — in quiet conversations with family, in their prayer rooms, or on long drives home.

“I didn’t post to perform,” said Al-Jadaan. “I posted to remember.”

 


National Water Co. ready for post-Hajj season

Updated 10 June 2025
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National Water Co. ready for post-Hajj season

  • The company added the plan included securing water storage and coordinating with water production and distribution systems

MADINAH: The National Water Co. has confirmed it is operationally ready for the post-Hajj season.

The company said it would distribute more than 630,000 cubic meters of potable water daily to pilgrims at the Prophet’s Mosque and throughout Madinah and said its readiness built on ongoing efforts to serve pilgrims and visitors.

The plan involves more than 1,200 employees, including technical, administrative and engineering staff, working to provide water and environmental services.

The company added the plan included securing water storage and coordinating with water production and distribution systems, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

Water will be supplied daily during the post-Hajj season through continuous pumping to the central area and religious sites. Chemical and biological tests will be conducted to ensure compliance with water quality standards.

The company said its smart operation system continues to manage and monitor Madinah’s water network, overseeing water pressure and quality in pipelines and reservoirs.