Mumbai's "Oxygen Man" Shahnawaz Shaikh Sold His SUV To Save 8,000 Lives Amid Covid

Shahnawaz Shaikh, 32, sold his SUV last year to start an oxygen supply initiative which today continues to save lives amid the COVID-19 pandemic

Fifty one-year-old Zabunisa Sheikh is an asthma patient. On April 20 this year, she found out that she is Covid positive. Soon her condition started deteriorating as she was facing difficulty in breathing and was struggling to get a bed in a hospital. Her life was saved due to the timely intervention from Shahnawaz Shaikh, a 32-year-old man, popularly known as "Oxygen Man" in Mumbai. Mr Shaikh provided an oxygen cylinder to her.   “I cannot forget that time when my mother was suffering. Had it not been for Shahnawaz Bhai (brother), my mother may not have made it. If my mother is alive today, it is because of Allah (God) and Shahnawaz Bhai. There was no oxygen even in the hospital at that time, there was no oxygen in the local hospital here, Shahnawaz Bhai was giving oxygen there too,” says Asif Shaikh, Zabunisa's son.  Shahnawaz Shaikh is now called the "Oxygen Man of Mumbai". This is the recognition and love that he has got for saving over 8,000 lives.  When he saw his close friend's pregnant sister dying due to the lack of oxygen in an auto-rickshaw, Mr Shaikh decided to leave the profession of a civil contractor, sold his SUV worth Rs 22 lakh, converted his general store into a war room, and went out to distribute free oxygen to the needy.