Sukhmeet Bhasin

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, April 30

To overcome the shortage of ambulances and check overcharging by drivers, dealers at the local Car Bazar have come up with a free service to transport Covid patients.

Sanjay Jindal, a car dealer, said: “In these tough times, people are being forced to pay more for ambulance service. Many can’t even afford it. We have decided to help the residents by offering them free transport service. We have a lot of cars at our disposal which will be pressed into service.”

There are reports that ambulance drivers have started charging Rs 2,000 for a single trip to and from hospital within the city against Rs 500 earlier. And if one has to go to Ludhiana, the drivers ask for Rs 17,000-20,000 against Rs 3,500 during the normal times, sources said, adding that another Rs 1,200-1,500 was charged for providing oxygen during the transportation.

An ambulance driver, pleading anonymity, said given the spike in Covid cases, there was a high risk of catching the infection. “We have increased the charges as after every trip, we have to sanitise the ambulance, which takes money and time,” he said.

Jindal said: “We will not take any money. Even the fuel expenses will be borne by us. Anyone who needs transport to shift a Covid patient to hospital can contact us. We only need a copy of Aadhaar card and doctor prescription for our record.”