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Urgent need for single emergency helpline number!
Written By kbsyed61 - 25 November, 2011
Civic amenities Bangalore Police suggestion Living Helplines Fire safety Emergency Ambulance Emergency Response system
Isn't it odd that we have to call different helpline for different emergency needs? In Bangalore, the listed emergency helpline numbers are:
Source - www.bangalore-karnataka.com
Police - Dial # 100
Traffic /Accidents - Dial # 103
Fire - Dial 101 or 2942999 or 2251780
Ambulance - Dial 102 or 108
Jaydeva Heart Brigade - Dial # 1051
Rotary Life Saving Brigade - Dial # 1050
and so on.
Take an example, incidence of a road accident. Going by the official instructions from Bengaluru Traffic Police, it requires for:
Communicate at the earliest to the 100 providing the following information regarding the location where it has happened, if any injuries are there indicate them, call for the ambulance, note down the numbers of the vehicle involved. Disclose your identity and the name and contact no’s of your relatives.
Consider another example of an sudden Heart Attack or Epilepsy Attack. In medical emergencies, we may have to call # 102 or #108. Here is an ordeal went through by one of the Praja member - Ambulence Service - Pizza Delivery Faster than Ambulence
Ambulance didn't had anyone else other than driver, no oxygen, forget A/C. It was a tempo traveller with a stretcher and siren,
What this tells us is there is no such thing as 'Single Emergency Helpline' in Bengaluru, which is easy to remember and use it. Same is the story in every state, city and town.
Need for single emergency helpline
In distress situation can't expect citizens to deal with multiple agencies thereby losing precious moments. In life threatening situations, hard to get citizens remain clam, think and take right decisions. Moreover those are very tense and emotional moments requiring an easy and helpful resource. These are the moments which calls for an help who understand, uttering some comforting words and could take right decisions.
When such is the reality of those moments, system with multiple numbers to be called is certainly not the choice. World over countries have adopted single emergency helpline number and is doing wonders in saving lives.
Single emergency helpline number enables people to remember and use it to seek help in any life threatening situations.
Objectives of a single emergency helpline number
- Receive, recognize and locate the caller on emergency system from all major phone systems including cell phones, VOIP, Payphone Booths etc.
- Understand and determine the emergency by talking to the victim or the caller.
- Notify the appropriate agency to dispatch their emergency response teams.
Bengaluru city definitely needs to change over to single emergency helpline system. it can not afford to continue in the era of multiple helplines.
What should be single helpline number?
It could be anything that is easy to remember and use it. It could be just converting the existing "Dial # 100" into all in-one emergency number allover city, state and country.
In US, it is the famous 9-1-1. In Europe it is 1-1-2.
It doesn't matter as along as it is same all over and it works.
Some References
COMMENTS
Would be a biggest achievement even if it gets jus the approval!
kbsyed61 - 8 April, 2015 - 16:15
@Murali,
It is a good sign but a long way to go. It is only a TRAI recommendation for now. It has a long road to cover to become a reality even if in a small area.
As you have been taking up this issue at different foras, is very much needed today. Even if Modi Sarkar gets this as a government's plan and vision for next 20 years, I would say this would be game changer like his predecessors Vajpayee for quadrangular Highway connectivity and MMS for AADHAR. It is not an easy task to accomplish but it is time to have a framework for very basic emergency response infrastructure. As the news articles rightly points out the much of it depends upon the stat governments. Center must pass a bill and make it mandatory for states to implement over a period 5-10 years. Obviously states will cry about funds etc which needs to be addressed.
Even in developed countries like USA, UK, where this is a well matured system, has been built and perfected over years. US, UK experiences can certainly help to design the framework for Indian Conditions.
This is an opportunity for the PM to go down in history for bringing 112 Emergency Response system in the country.
112 to become unified emergency response number in months
murali772 - 29 March, 2016 - 05:18
Indian citizens in distress will soon be able to get help using a single number, ‘112’, for all emergency services in the country, including the police, fire brigade and ambulance.
At present, such callers need to dial in different numbers for different emergencies like 100 for police, 101 for fire, 102 for ambulance and 108 for emergency disaster management. The move, recommended by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in April 2015, was approved by the Telecom Commission on Monday.
“It will be rolled out within months rather than a year,” official sources said.
For the full text of the report in The Hindu, click here.
TRAI had announced the intent in April last year - check my post of 8th April,15 (scrolling above). Well, it has taken a year since then. Whatever, it's good to hear that it's going to be rolled out now in months.
Having been pursuing it relentlessly from long, perhaps it would not be out of place for Praja to claim a bit of credit on the development, as also thereby re-establish its relevance.
sanjayv - 2 April, 2016 - 17:56
TRAI has recently notified of the adoption of a uniform emergency number, selected as 112 for the entire country. Within a period of 1 year post its implementation, it is envisaged that the entire emergency response system will shift to 112 and the old numbers will be phased out. This includes 100 - Police, 101, 102 and 108. From press reports, it appears to be injdicated that some other helplines will alslo be subsumed into this.
Bulk of the TRAI notification (D.O. Number 102-5/2014-NSLII dated 7 Apr 2015) and the ministries response (16-04/2015-AS-III/NP/32/321 dated 25 Aug 2015 is focussed on the telecom related technical aspects of the problem). It is mainly about collecting location and other information from the phone call and transferring the info to the call center and maintenance of the requisite databases.
All this is a necessary and important piece of the puzzle of emergency care in India. What is left unaddressed is: details on the nature of the call center itself. Training and provision of personnel to communicate with the caller and to dispatch emergency support competently. Recording of details and related standards for legal aspects. Funding of such an entity to cover both urban, semi urban and rural areas of the state /nation, for call center, for care provided and other services such that it is sustainable and a satisfactory level of service is acheived.
In short, the thought is good, but just having a number does not solve the problem. In fact, a central number could make matters worse, It is accepted that the elevle of service available in the country today is fairly pathetic. It is worth studying various options for funding emergency services and for capacity building.
Areas worth studying - the GVK EMRI 108 system, suitable legal framework for emergency care. Proposed laws on emergency care by the law commission of India.
more proactive approach needed from city police
murali772 - 26 December, 2016 - 06:19
In your worst times, the best that Bengaluru police can offer you is an Interactive Voice Response (IVR). And only if you are extremely lucky will you hear from an operator at the other end. On Tuesday, a businessman who was being chased by suspected highway robbers, met with nothing but frustration when he dialled 100 for help.
- - - On Wednesday, police reached out to Aditya, seeking details of what had transpired on that evening and why he couldn't get help on dialling 100. R Hitendra, additional commissioner, administration, said Aditya's call did not go through as he hadn't dialled the correct number from the options offered by the IVR. However, when asked why should it be an IVR and not an operator taking the calls directly, Hitendra said this system was installed to prevent blank calls. “We get several blank calls and if every call is allowed to go through, our lines will be clogged and we won't be able to attend to those really in need of help. The IVR is to help filter blank calls,“ he said.
TIMES VIEW: Police claim those unable to reach 100 constitute a small percentage. However even for that population, the call could be a matter of life and death and it's important that a trained operator answers the call, rather an IVR handling it. A person under attack will not have the time to listen to options and make a selection. The control room should not be just a support unit, but a core service. An operator should be trained to respond to emergencies with the available resources and not be a glorified telephone operator. The real measure of its effectiveness will be when people on the street trust the control room like they do 911 in the US, to help them every time.
For the full text of the report (emphasis added by me) in the ToI, click here.
The "Times View" has summarised it most aptly. Now, the number 112 was to emerge as the Unified Emergency Response Number across the country, according to a news report in March (check my post of 29th March, scrolling above). Whatever has happened to that? Perhaps, what's required of the Bengaluru police is to pursue that with the Centre, while, in the meanwhile, putting together a far more responsive arrangement than obtaining at present.
On our part, we too will apply pressure on the TRAI and Telecom ministry to implement the 112 scheme speedily.
112 - Indian equivalent of US's 911
murali772 - 8 April, 2015 - 13:36
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