PATNA: Now, people will need to dial only a single emergency number, 112, to get help from either police, fire department, disaster management department or health (ambulance) services in the state. The round-the-clock emergency response support system (ERSS) will be functional soon as the 30-day trial run in Patna is likely to conclude by June-end.
A centralized state-level emergency response centre (SERC) has been set up at Bihar Police Radio headquarters at Patel Nagar in Patna. The main centre will be digitally connected to the police control rooms at district level and GPS-enabled emergency response vehicles stationed at the police stations.
It is an integrated emergency response system to provide emergency services to people in distress anywhere in the state. Even if somebody dials 100, 101, 102 or 108, the call will automatically connect to 112.
ADG (HQ) Jitendra Singh Gangwar said altogether 1,200 emergency vehicles will be procured for the dial 112 service in two phases. "In the first phase, 400 vehicles have been procured, each costing Rs10 lakh. All the vehicles are equipped with the GPS, tablets and wireless system. When a person dials 112 for help, the nearest vehicle will be sent to the location, depending upon the kind of emergency. We are training the officers to operate this service," he said. "The centralized centre has been linked to the health services, police, fire and disaster management departments. There are some issues we are working on, but we will soon launch the service. Bihar Police have roped in ex-Armymen for this project. Each vehicle will have an officer, a constable and a driver," he told TOI on Wednesday.
As a pilot project, total 100 vehicles will be given to Patna for ERSS. Some police stations will get one vehicle while others in urban areas will get two, depending on the size of their jurisdiction.
Patna SSP Manavjit Singh Dhillon said 30 vehicles are running on trial basis in the district to check the practical difficulties in synchronization. "The trial runs have started about 10 days back in important areas," he said. "If anyone dials 112, the message will be received to the system automatically to trace the location and send the emergency response vehicle for help. In case, additional police force is required, more policemen will be sent to the spot, depending on the gravity of the situation," Dhillon said.
"Patna's district coordination centre will run from Bihar Police Radio headquarters initially. But once the integrated command and control centre (ICCC) building is ready at the SSP office near Gandhi Maidan, we will get a space for district-level centre to monitor dial 112 service," he added.
