Nandurbar, a tribal and hilly district in Maharashtra with a population of 20 lakh, is an unlikely contender for setting a precedent for the rest of India, but under the leadership of district collector Dr Rajendra Bharud, it took several measures to augment medical oxygen supply ahead of the second wave of Covid-19. Now that Delhi and several other cities are running short of oxygen for critical patients, this district is well equipped to meet the challenge. This is surprising for a district whose human development index is 0.604. Nandurbar is far away from big cities. It has limited private health facilities and resources – there are only two government doctors with an MD degree. There are no medical colleges. When there are no testing facilities, it would be too much to expect a liquid oxygen plant.