K'taka govt. to take over 108 ambulance service from private control, announces Min. Dinesh Gundurao
Bengaluru: Karnataka’s Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao announced on Wednesday that the state government will take over the management of 108 ambulance services, taking them out of the hands of private agencies.
Until now, the 108 ambulance services were operated by private agencies despite being owned and funded by the government. "There were several operational problems under private management. Ambulance staff often faced delays in salary payments, and the government had to step in repeatedly to resolve such issues," Rao said.
He emphasized that the government had been bearing the entire cost of the service from fuel expenses to employee wages while the operations were outsourced to a private entity. The arrangement included a single command center for the entire state, which Rao said was inadequate for managing such a critical health service.
Highlighting the importance of the 108 service in saving lives during medical emergencies, Rao revealed that a pilot project to directly manage ambulances was successfully implemented in Chamarajanagar district. Encouraged by its success, the government is now ready to expand the model statewide.
Beginning next month, all government ambulances will be brought under the direct supervision of the health department. Within three months, the department also plans to take control of the command and control functions currently handled by private agencies. A central command center will be established in Bengaluru, along with district-level centers to ensure better coordination and faster response times.
Minister Rao also added that this transition will not only streamline operations and enhance service quality but also result in significant savings running into hundreds of crores for the state exchequer.
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Telangana student found hanging in NIT Kurukshetra hostel room
Kurukshetra (PTI): A 19-year-old student from Telangana allegedly died by suicide at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) in Haryana's Kurukshetra district on Monday.
The student, identified as Angod Shiva, was found hanging from a ceiling fan in his hostel room, police said.
He was a resident of Maheshwari village in Rangareddy district, Telangana, and a first-semester student pursuing a degree in Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) at the institute and was staying in a hostel room on the campus.
No suicide note was found at the spot, police said.
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At the time of the incident, Shiva was alone in his room. His two roommates, both from Haryana, had gone for lunch. Earlier in the morning, Shiva had attended his classes around 10 am. After the class, he returned to his room while his roommates left for lunch, officials said.
When Shiva did not come to the mess for lunch, one of his roommates went back to call him. The room was locked from the inside. Despite repeated knocking, there was no response. The roommate then went around to the rear side of the building and looked through a window, where he allegedly saw Shiva hanging from the ceiling fan.
The matter was immediately reported to the NIT administration, which informed the police.
In charge of a police post under Thanesar police station, Vinod Kumar, said the body has been taken into custody and kept in the mortuary of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Hospital (LNJP) for post-mortem examination.
Police have informed Shiva's family members, who are expected to arrive soon. Further action will be taken based on the statement of the family, Kumar said.
During preliminary questioning, Shiva's friends told the police that he used to speak frequently on the phone, but they could not understand his native language. However, he conversed with them in Hindi.
Police have initiated proceedings under relevant sections of the law and are continuing their investigation into the matter.
