'112' could soon become the country's national emergency number, similar to 911 in the US and Canada and 999 in the UK, with telecom regulator Trai pitching it as the country's main helpline number for a range of exigencies.
Trai has recommended that all existing emergency numbers like 100 (police), 101 (fire), 102 (ambulance) and 108 (disaster management) be subsumed into 112, which should become the mainstay for emergency calls. Also, it says calls to the emergency number should be prioritized in mobile networks and SMS-based access should be permitted. Importantly , Trai has said the location and details of the caller should be made available to agencies taking the emergency calls so that swift help can be provided. Trai has suggested the inclusion of a host of services under 112, the national emergency number it has proposed. In the initial phase, these would include calls meant for police, fire, ambulance, helplines for women, senior citizens and children.Other services may be integrated progressively and in a phased manner. Trai's recommendations have been presented to the government, which will have to take a final call on the matter. However, implementation can be a challenge as many of the areas, especially policing, are state subjects. Also, putting in place adequate infrastructure -like ambulances and requisite number of police personnel -to deal with emergency situations could be a nightmare.
Trai said having a single number to deal with emergency situations of all kinds will make the process of redressal faster and easier. “In a distress situation, a person will normally call a number of an agency from where he can receive immediate help or assistance...The existence of different numbers for different emergencies adds to confusion. From the user's perspective, it is simpler and desirable to have a single number for all types of emergencies which, when called, results in a professionally coordinated response to the user depending upon the situation.“
Trai has recommended that all existing emergency numbers like 100 (police), 101 (fire), 102 (ambulance) and 108 (disaster management) be subsumed into 112, which should become the mainstay for emergency calls. Also, it says calls to the emergency number should be prioritized in mobile networks and SMS-based access should be permitted. Importantly , Trai has said the location and details of the caller should be made available to agencies taking the emergency calls so that swift help can be provided. Trai has suggested the inclusion of a host of services under 112, the national emergency number it has proposed. In the initial phase, these would include calls meant for police, fire, ambulance, helplines for women, senior citizens and children.Other services may be integrated progressively and in a phased manner. Trai's recommendations have been presented to the government, which will have to take a final call on the matter. However, implementation can be a challenge as many of the areas, especially policing, are state subjects. Also, putting in place adequate infrastructure -like ambulances and requisite number of police personnel -to deal with emergency situations could be a nightmare.
Trai said having a single number to deal with emergency situations of all kinds will make the process of redressal faster and easier. “In a distress situation, a person will normally call a number of an agency from where he can receive immediate help or assistance...The existence of different numbers for different emergencies adds to confusion. From the user's perspective, it is simpler and desirable to have a single number for all types of emergencies which, when called, results in a professionally coordinated response to the user depending upon the situation.“
No comments:
Post a Comment