PUNE: Hoax calls continue to bug the state government’s ambulance service providers though five years have passed since the utility became fully operational across Maharashtra.
A Maharashtra Emergency Medical Services (MEMS) official said its toll-free number (108) received a sizable number of calls from pranksters raising false alarms and people abusing the call operators for no reason.
He said though the trend has been on the decline over the years, it was yet to stop with the service provider receiving 96 hoax calls between January and July this year. Last year, the service provider had got 137 hoax calls, down from 237 in 2017.
“Such calls are a hindrance because time is a key factor when it comes to saving lives. Someone may be genuinely in need of emergency medical help and trying to contact us at a time when some prankster is keeping the number engaged,” MEMS chief operating officer Dnyaneshwar Shelke said.
“There are two types of callers, who waste the call centre operators’ time. In the first category are those who engage the woman call centre operators in lewd talks. Some of them become abusive when the women refuse to talk. The other type of callers are those who cook up stories of road accidents. When our officials reach the spot in the ambulances, they find nothing,” he said.
The health department has taken a slew of measures to educate people and initiate action against the offenders. “We have taken action against some repeat offenders in the past with the police’s help. Besides, we conduct counselling on the phone and explain the offenders the importance of the service,” Shelke said.
The call centre of the free ambulance service is at the Aundh Civil hospital in Pune.
Call operator Akshada Ratnapal, who has been working with MEMS ever since its inception, said, “Many times we feel that some information shared with us is wrong. But we cannot take chances. We alert the nearest ambulances to reach the spots.”
The MEMS is a state government project under the National Health Mission and operated by the Bharat Vikas Group India Limited with support from the UK Specialist Ambulance Service.
A Maharashtra Emergency Medical Services (MEMS) official said its toll-free number (108) received a sizable number of calls from pranksters raising false alarms and people abusing the call operators for no reason.
He said though the trend has been on the decline over the years, it was yet to stop with the service provider receiving 96 hoax calls between January and July this year. Last year, the service provider had got 137 hoax calls, down from 237 in 2017.
“Such calls are a hindrance because time is a key factor when it comes to saving lives. Someone may be genuinely in need of emergency medical help and trying to contact us at a time when some prankster is keeping the number engaged,” MEMS chief operating officer Dnyaneshwar Shelke said.
“There are two types of callers, who waste the call centre operators’ time. In the first category are those who engage the woman call centre operators in lewd talks. Some of them become abusive when the women refuse to talk. The other type of callers are those who cook up stories of road accidents. When our officials reach the spot in the ambulances, they find nothing,” he said.
The health department has taken a slew of measures to educate people and initiate action against the offenders. “We have taken action against some repeat offenders in the past with the police’s help. Besides, we conduct counselling on the phone and explain the offenders the importance of the service,” Shelke said.
The call centre of the free ambulance service is at the Aundh Civil hospital in Pune.
Call operator Akshada Ratnapal, who has been working with MEMS ever since its inception, said, “Many times we feel that some information shared with us is wrong. But we cannot take chances. We alert the nearest ambulances to reach the spots.”
The MEMS is a state government project under the National Health Mission and operated by the Bharat Vikas Group India Limited with support from the UK Specialist Ambulance Service.
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