BHUBANESWAR: A 108 Ambulance, carrying a woman with her ailing child, got stuck in traffic near new Airport Square as Commissionerate Police cordoned off the area for giving passage to Chief Minister Minister Naveen Patnaik’s motorcade on Monday.This happened on a day when Bhubaneswar got its Command and Control Centre which can provide real time traffic solutions.Incidentally, it was Naveen who had, in the past, instructed that a corridor be provided for ambulances during VVIP movement.
According to police, the ambulance was on its way to Capital Hospital from Ganganagar area when it ran into a long queue of vehicles which had been held up by police for giving passage to Naveen’s convoy.
The Chief Minister’s motorcade was heading towards Sachivalaya Marg from his residence when the cops blocked vehicular movement leaving the ambulance stranded several hundred metres from Capital Hospital.
Commissionerate Police, however, defended its action saying ambulance was not obstructed from moving ahead but due to presence of other vehicles, its movement was hindered.“The CM’s motorcade had almost passed when the ambulance arrived. Subsequently, the traffic was cleared and the ambulance was immediately given passage,” Bhubaneswar DCP Anup Kumar Sahoo told The Express. Asked about the standard operating procedure for passage to ambulances, the DCP said movement of ambulance is accorded first priority.
The incident drew political criticism. Taking a dig at Naveen, State Congress chief Niranjan Patnaik tweeted, “The feudalistic mindset of CM ‘sahab’ on full display. Is the convenience of our CM more important than the life of a patient? The VVIP culture must end. There is nothing more important than a human life.”Since the route gets cordoned off due to the Chief Minister’s movement, Naveen had earlier asked authorities for developing a dedicated ambulance corridor but so far the work has not been initiated.