The Union Health Ministry has finally woken up to the toll extracted by road accidents and has planned a Rs-1,000-crore project to create an extensive trauma service network.Of the 1.2 million people who die in road accidents worldwide, India alone accounts for 10 per cent.To counter the problem, the planned ‘Integrated Trauma Care System’ envisages fully equipped ambulances every 50 km and a primary hospital every 100 km. The idea is to take advantage of the crucial ‘golden hour’— the first hour after the accident that can save a life. The project will cover over 13,000 km of highways across the country, including a 5,000-km stretch of the Golden Quadrilateral and 7000 km of corridors. Each ambulance will be connected to a hospital, which is not necessarily for trauma care. ‘‘Hospitals are being identified at every 100 km. These will be upgraded to handle accident victims. There should be facilities to perform surgeries,’’ said an official. In case no hospitals are available on the highway within the 100-km stretch, ‘‘we can make new hospitals according to need,’’ he added. Under the Department of Emergency Medical Relief, the project has a proposed budget of s 1,000 crore. ‘‘The money is not a problem, as it has already been allocated under the National Highway Development Programme,’’ said officials. A proposal has been made to generate money from the transport tax levied at various points on the highways. The proposal was sent to the Finance Commission by the end of 2004 and consultations are on with the Union Ministry of Roads and Surface Transport. ‘‘Two consultations have already taken place and both ministries are keen on the project,’’ said the official. The project got its final push following a recommendation by an expert committee set up by the National Human Rights Commission. The Commission had recommended a network of trauma services on highways and submitted its report to health ministry and state governments in April 2004. ‘‘The expert group was formed following the lack of preparedness to deal with trauma services that was witnessed after the Uphaar tragedy in Delhi in 1997,’’ said a member of the expert group. The 10th Plan has also underlined the need for trauma services in the country. ‘‘Under the 9th Plan, 13 hospitals had been identified and the government had provided Rs 1.5 crore to each for upgrading trauma facilities. Recently, another 27 hospitals have been added,’’ said the official. ‘‘The plan is to provide Rs 1.5 crore to all the identified hospitals,’’ he added. The government has given a deadline till 2007 to complete the highway project. The health ministry claims their work will be completed in four years.
