The proposal for air ambulance has received an ‘in-principle’ approval and will be fully funded by the Centre ... Read More

NAINITAL: Uttarakhand is set to become the first state in the country to provide air ambulance for people living in hills and far-flung areas, who face difficulties in accessing health services due to bad roads.

The proposal, drafted under the aegis of National Health Mission, has received an ‘in-principle’ approval and will be fully funded by the Centre.

Anjali Nautiyal, director of National Health Mission, said the health department is preparing a comprehensive detailed project report (DPR) to work out the modalities of the service.

“This is the first regular air ambulance service by any state in India. The services will be helpful to save lives which are lost due to inaccessible roads and delay of ambulance services in remote areas of the hills. We are preparing a detailed report and hope to see the services start within next 2-3 months,” Nautiyal told TOI

She added that “we are collating data and analysis of geographic and demographic factors to determine the areas where the service will be needed the most.”

Providing further details, Nautiyal said the chopper (which will function as the air ambulance) will have a doctor to provide first-aid in the initial hours of the medical emergency.

She also added that the chief medical officer of the district will be authorised to summon the air ambulance in cases of emergency.

The state already has ‘108’ ambulance service for quick response, but of late, it has been riddled with difficulties. The introduction of air ambulance is expected to add much-needed muscle to emergency health care in the state.

Dushyant Mainali, a Haldwani-based lawyer who has been filing a number of litigations regarding lack of health care facilities in the state, told TOI that if the air ambulance service becomes affordable, then “it can become a role model for other states to follow.”

Notably, in August this year, the Uttarakhand high court had commented upon the dismal state of medical services in remote areas and had expressed its concerns over bad roads due to which pregnant women suffer in getting timely medical assistance.

“All roads are important, even the one on which a pregnant woman had to travel for three days on a palanquin,” the court had said referring to a TOI report on how a pregnant woman had to cover a distance of 25 km on the shoulders of villagers (since her village had no roads) in order to reach the nearest medical facility.

