The number that changes everything
India records roughly 1.5 lakh road accident deaths each year, according to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. A 2019 study published in the Indian Journal of Surgery found that nearly 50% of those deaths occur within the first hour of injury, and a significant share of those happen before any ambulance arrives. The average emergency response time in Indian metros runs between 15 and 20 minutes. In smaller cities, it stretches further. The ten minutes before help arrives are not a waiting room. They are the clinical window.
