Countries like UK and US, whose national emergency numbers are 911 and 999 respectively, now even India is going to have 112 as its national emergency number.
The inter-ministerial telecom commission has recently given its approval for this initiative.
With the introduction of 112, the existing emergency numbers like 100 (for police), 101 (fire), 102 (ambulance) and 108 (disaster management) can see a gradual phase out. However, they would be in operation at least for an year.
The need of having a single number for all the emergencies, has been proposed long back, and would require the active participation and enabling provisions from states to make it a success.
TRAI, in its recommendations submitted to Telecom department in April last year, had suggested to adopt 112 as national emergency number.
Initially, it suggested to include the services of police, fire, ambulance, helpline for women, senior citizens and children. Other services may be integrated gradually and in a phased manner.
To implement the services efficiently, calls to the emergency number will be prioritized in mobile networks, while SMS based access will also be permitted.
The notable point is, the caller’s location and other details should be made available to the agencies, so that, the service can be quicker.
“The states will need to set up call centres that would also cater to the local languages spoken in their respective region,” an official source said.
Not just one or two, the requirement of 112 number has come forward due to several reasons. 100 number which is very popular one, was not recommended as it is associated with police and several sections of society, especially women and children, may not wish to dial it.
A few opine that, implementation of the measure would be tough, as several areas, especially policing, is a state subject.
Moreover, bringing into action, the adequate infrastructure like ambulances and requisite number of police personnel, to deal with emergency situations at a quick pace, can be an infrastructure nightmare.
By Phani Ch
