‘Dial 112’ helpline to get functional in Hry by March 2020: Vij

CHANDIGARH: Haryana home minister Anil Vij on Thursday said common emergency helpline number ‘Dial 112’ will be made functional in the state by March 2020.

In a statement, Vij said the officers concerned have been directed to immediately resolve all the issues related to the project.

The helpline has been started across the country as an emergency response support system (ERSS) for informing the police, fire brigade or ambulance services. The ERSS is funded under the Nirbhaya Fund created by the Centre for all the states and union territories for the safety of women.

The minister said with the implementation of the ‘Dial 112’ helpline, police assistance will be given within 15-20 minutes.

The state government has failed to spend 68% of the allocated amount from the ₹10,000 crore Nirbhaya Fund.

Director general of police (DGP) Manoj Yadava had said though the state ranked 5 in terms of countrywide utilisation of the corpus, unutilised funds were on account of delays in the implementation of ERSS.

Vij, who presided over a meeting of the police department on the ‘Dial 112’ project, said an effective emergency management system will be implemented and new vehicles will be purchased for the purpose.

He said these police vehicles will be equipped with wireless and medical facilities. About 5,000 cops will be deputed and 1,600 vehicles deployed for this, adding that strict action will be taken against the officials concerned in case a complaint is filed.