Assam health secretary and commissioner Prateek Hajela flags off the boat ambulance service on Friday.
The boat ambulance has made its debut in the city’s healthcare sector.
The National Rural Health Mission today introduced a boat ambulance between Guwahati and North Guwahati to ferry patients during an emergency.
The ambulance will reach the southern bank of Brahmaputra (Guwahati) in 10 to 15 minutes from the north. It will carry patients with a maximum of two attendants, and then 108 Mritunjoy ambulance would take them to the nearest hospital.
Health and family welfare minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the boat ambulance service was equipped with emergency medical services and the service would be available on the advice of a doctor.
Assam became the first state in the country in 2009 to have boat ambulances fitted with life-saving equipment to reach out to those in distress, particularly in the riverine areas.
“Generally, it takes nearly three hours to transport a patient across the river from North Guwahati. With the introduction of the boat ambulance, a patient can be transported from North Guwahati to the city in less than half-an-hour,” a health department official said.
He said there were instances of tragedies in the past when patients died on their way to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital and Mahendra Mohan Choudhury Hospital.
“We do not want repeat of such tragedies in future. If required the number of boat ambulances will be increased. Residents of North Guwahati have been demanding more facilities and infrastructure to have easy access to prime places in Guwahati,” the official said.
North Guwahati has many historical temples like Dirgheswari Devalay (temple or shrine), Doul Govinda Temple, Mani-karneswar Devalay, Aswaklanta Devalay, Rudreswar Devalay, Auniati Satra.
The place is surrounded by evergreen trees and a fast-flowing brook and has always been a favourite spot for picnics. IIT Guwahati is also situated in North Guwahati.
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