Chopper service

The hilly State of Jammu and Kashmir often witnesses the fury of nature in more than one way. We have storms, avalanches, landslides, floods or draughts. These take a huge and unwanted toll of precious human and animal lives besides habitats and public property. One calamity that befalls more often than any other listed above is of road accidents over the hilly and tortuous routes of the State. On frequency of road accidents and resultant fatalities we have often written in these columns. We are aware that the traffic department and the Government both are seized of this big problem and there are frequent consultations among the authorities like traffic control officers, the PWD functionaries and the Health Department workers on tackling the victims of road accidents. It is a different thing that so far no foolproof mechanism is in place that would reduce occurrence of road accidents.
We are discussing not road accidents in particular but the preparedness of the State Government and concerned Department in meeting a situation that arises out of road accidents. We are talking about the evacuation of the victims of road accident within shortest possible time and providing them medical assistance forthwith. The point is that so far the practice has been that whenever a tragic road accident happened along the mountain roads in the State, and the State authorities approached the IAF, the latter would provide chopper service to evacuate the injured needing immediate medical assistance. Now this is not a private matter between the State Government and the IAF. It is a matter between the Defence Ministry and the Government of Jammu and Kashmir. In recent road accident that happened in Doda, the IAF declined to oblige the Government by providing facility of lifting the victims.
The State Government has not been handling the issue of evacuation as seriously as it should. There has to be a proper formal approval and understanding between the State Government and the Defence Ministry on how, when and under what circumstances and conditions the IAF has to be approached for emergency evacuation. The other rather disappointing fact is that the State Government has not cleared the liabilities on account of airlift charges to the IAF that is said to be running into crores. Despite repeated reminders of the IAF the State Government has not cleared the liability. If the IAF declined to lift the victims of Doda road accident, they cannot be faulted. Rather it is the State Government that has to be faulted. In fact, the State Government should have long back entered into a viable agreement with the Defence Ministry on this issue but it has not done. Non-serious attitude of the State Government is sustained at the cost of the lives of poor people.
The more sordid part of this story is that the State Government has the choppers but these are not used for lifting the victims when emergency happens. The Ministers, MLAs and VIPs and other privileged people enjoy joy-rides on these machines and they would not spare these for lifting the victims of road accidents. Non-seriousness of the State is to be fathomed by the fact that there is no budgetary provision for this service. No allocations are made and the result is that the payments to IAF remain in pendency. What we suggest to the Government is that it should enter into a solid agreement with the Defence Ministry, lay down the conditions clearly and the modus operandi of requisitioning the services of evacuation and terms of payment of rent etc. Let this be a clear and transparent deal so that in times of emergency all concerned know what rules govern the process of evacuation.

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