NEW DELHI: A multi-city survey conducted by the non-profit SaveLIFE Foundation reveals that eight out of 10 people in India are unaware of the 2016 Good Samaritan law, which aims to encourage citizens to offer first aid to victims without fear of harassment from police and other agencies.Southern metros had the least awareness of the law, with 93% of Chennai respondents saying they didn’t know about it, and 92% in Bengaluru and 89% in Hyderabad saying the same. On the other hand, Indore (29%) had highest recall of the law, followed by Jaipur (28%), Mumbai (22%) and Delhi (21%).The survey found that though the general willingness to help victims had risen from 26% in 2013 to 88% in 2018, “in terms of concrete actions, the willingness to help the victims is still low”.The survey findings indicate lack of public campaigns or insufficient public awareness drives regarding the law, Piyush Tewari, founder and CEO of SaveLIFE, said. The survey interviewed 3,667 people including general citizens, good Samaritans , police officials, hospital administration, medical practitioners and trial court lawyers.“Out of the respondents willing to help, only 29% were willing to escort the victim to a hospital, 28% were willing to call an ambulance and only 12% said they would call the police,” the report by SaveLIFE said.As per the Good Samaritan Law, all hospitals and police stations are supposed to display a good Samaritan charter at their entrance, enumerating the rights of the people who bring or accompany the injured to the hospital. However, the survey revealed 100% non-compliance on this account.The law says anyone making phone call to police control room about an accident won’t be asked to reveal identity. He or she should also not be compelled to disclose his address or identity either by the police or the hospital staff. If a good Samaritan becomes witness, police will examine him or her with utmost care and only once.However, the SaveLIFE survey reveals nearly 59% of the surveyed good Samaritan reported they were detained by the police. Many police officials admitted that they take personal details of good Samaritans. “Nearly 74% of the surveyed police officials and 87% of surveyed medical professionals admitted to not having any training on implementing the law,” officials from SaveLIfe said.Commenting on the research report, the CEO of SaveLife Foundation added, “It is quite evident from the study that even two years after the institution of the Good Samaritan Law, citizens are unaware of their new rights. So, people are still hesitant to help. Moreover, implementation of the SC judgement, even at the official level, has been remarkably low.” Tewari suggested that the need of the hour is for states to translate the SC judgment into a State Good Samaritan Law.The law is needed to save thousands of people who suffer serious injuries and die in road accidents in India because emergency medical services aren’t widely available and bystanders don’t want to get involved fearing harassment.