24x7 free ambulance service by a team of Bengre youths

• Witnessing death due to non-availability of ambulance inspires them to provide health service

Mangaluru: Witnessing two people lose their lives due to non-availability of ambulance inspired the youth of this area to provide 24×7 ambulance service. This is the success story of the youth belonging to the Bengre Nahgarika Seva Committee in Tota Bengre. The people living between Tota Bengre and Tannirbavi have to rely on a boat to reach the city which lies one-and-a-hall kilometer away. But the boat trip is available only till 10 pm in the night. Therefore, the people find it very difficult to make contact with the city as the day turns into the night.

Though the people who own a vehicle reach the city through a roundabout road, it is a challenge for the poor. If there is a medical emergency and a person need to be shifted to the hospital late in the night, the river in between remains impassable. Also, it is futile to hire a vehicle to reach the city which is at a distance of 14kms, since there are no vehicles available afterhours. Hundreds have lost their life due to unavailability of a vehicle to transfer the patients to the hospital in good time during the nights. The death of two people in front of their eyes left an impact on the minds of the committee members who, with full determination, saved money from their earnings and along with the monetary donation from the locals were successful in starting off an ambulance service. Now the ambulance functions 24×7 and in the span of two years, has transferred more than 186 patients to the hospitals in the city in good time, says committee member Lokesh Suvarna.

Rs 6.5 lakh spent

The ambulance was bought at the cost of Rs 4.5 lakh. An ambulance parking shed has been created in Bengre at the cost of Rs 2 lakh. Also, ten drivers have been appointed with a key given to each and hence 24 hours service is provided to the people. Two additional keys have been placed in the shed in case of emergencies. Anytime there is a call, the ambulance rushes to the patients home and reaches him to the hospital with haste. The ambulance also has the facility for blood. The youth also help those who do not understand the formalities of the hospital. The entire service is for free.

The residents of Tota Bengre, Kasaba Bengre, Kudroli Bengre, Bokkapatna have made use of this service. There are more than 1,000 families living in these areas and close to 90% of them are from a poor background.

Missed Distress

Before the ambulance service was started, if anyone fell ill during the night, one had to wake up the boatman and request for his service. If he agrees, there’s hope, if not, all hope is lost. It would take at least 30 minutes to untie the boat, row it and reach to the other side. Even then, the chances of hiring a vehicle on the other side remained slim. Thus, the patient who was in a serious condition was thrown into a situation of life and death. Now, this distress of the people in this area has been averted.

Service with people’s cooperation

“Earlier, taking the patient to the hospital was a question in itself. The ambulance service was started with the cooperation of the locals. Till now, more than 186 people have taken advantage of this service,” informs Yatish Bengre, Secretary, Bengre Nahgarika Seva Committee

 Article by Dhanya Balekaje translated into English by Aaron Dmello