COIMBATORE: Coimbatore City Police have decided to attach GPS in ambulances owned by NGOs and private players through sponsors to facilitate easy access to nearest hospitals in the city.There are 113 hospitals, including 24 government owned hospitals in the Coimbatore city limit.
A total of 47 private ambulances out of 109, have GPS facilities for easy tracking as of now. Similarly the facility is available in all the 17 government owned ambulances operated in the city. Police have planned to install the GPS devices in remaining 62 ambulances.
City police commissioner V Balakrishnan said that the movement of ambulances would be monitored from the control room and the traffic signals would be opened according to the arrival of the ambulances so that the patients can reach hospital on time.
“The ‘108’ ambulances are fitted with GPS devices. Others ambulances operating in the city will be fitted with GPS soon. Meanwhile, some of private hospitals and NGOs have come forward to sponsor the installation of GPS devices in ambulances. After the fixing, they will be linked with the police’s modern control room. After fixing the GPS device, the ambulance driver should inform the city police control room and the cops will monitor the movement of the ambulance.
“They will give instructions to the traffic cops based on the GPS location, and signals will be opened for the ambulances,” he added. “If any ambulance is used for illegal activities, criminal action would be taken against the driver and owner of the vehicles,” he said.