Shillong: Meghalaya Chief Secretary R V Suchiang on Friday inaugurated the Nationwide Emergency Response System (NERS) / Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) or Dial ‘112’, at Sadar Police Station Complex, Shillong.
The programme was attended by Special Director General of Police, I Nongrang, Cyril V D Diengdoh, Secretary Home (Police) among others.
The Nationwide Emergency Response System (NERS) / Emergency Response Support System (ERSS)/ Dial 112 is the vision of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India, to launch a nationwide, unified emergency response system with a single emergency number ‘112’, for all kinds of emergencies and distress signals from citizens in the form of voice call, SMS, e-mail, panic SOS request, web request, etc.
All these distress signals are sent to the common number 112, the automated facility envisaged to-be set up for this purpose in the capital cities of all states and Union Territories will handle all distress signals and provide assistance within the best possible time. Henceforth, all the existing emergency numbers like 100 (police), 101 (Fire and Rescue) and 108 (ambulance), 181 (Women and Child Care) etc, will be integrated to unified number ‘112’.
The implementation of Nationwide Emergency Response System involves setting up of three major components: Public Safety Answering Point implementation at the State/UT capital, District Coordination Centre extensions with associated Emergency Response Units (vehicles fitted with mobile data terminals) and the National Support Services implementation at the national capital.
In Meghalaya the Home department has procured 8 vans and the government had allowed the department to requisition 12 light vehicles to begin with the NERS project, all these vehicles are fitted with the MDTs, first aid boxes and fire extinguishers.
These vehicles are distributed across the state as follows: East Khasi Hills – 4, West Khasi Hills – 1, Ri Bhoi – 2, East Jaintia Hills – 1, West Jaintia Hills – 2, Eastern West Khasi Hills – 1, South West Khasi Hills – 1, North Garo Hills – 1, East Garo Hills – 2, West Garo Hills – 3, South West Garo Hills – 1 and South Garo Hills – 1.
Besides, highway patrol vehicles will also be mounted with MDTs and will function as Emergency Response Vehicles and anybody facing problems on the highway can call 112 now. The state currently has 13 highway patrol vehicles.