Guwahati Gets 2 More Auto-rickshaw Ambulances with Oxygen

Guwahati: The Lions Club of Gauhati has added two more COVID auto ambulances to serve COVID-19 patients amid rising oxygen requirements with increasing cases.

As part of its free COVID auto ambulance service initiative launched on May 12, the 52-year-old NGO has added the ambulances which are equipped with oxygen cylinder.

At least 70 patients in the city have availed the auto service, according to the club members. Club member Manoj Bhajanka said, "This initiative was launched on May 12 and over 70 patients have so far availed the service. The ambulance is equipped with oxygen cylinder."

"Many times COVID patients do not get oxygen at the right time when their oxygen levels are low, which leads to severe problems and even deaths. These auto-ambulances are equipped with oxygen cylinder, masks and sanitisers. The drivers of the auto-ambulance are equipped with safety measures like PPE kit, mask, face shield, gloves etc," he added.

On May 12, the Lions Club of Gauhati launched the initiative at Poddar Complex, Forest Gate, Narangi, Guwahati.

Bhajanka further said that the service was inaugurated by radiologist and former District Governor of Lions Club International, Dr ML Agarwal, current club President Lion Kishore Saboo and other senior members of the Lions Club. The initiative was given shape by Project Chairman Ajay Poddar who defined the purpose of starting this free auto-ambulance service, which is to ensure that COVID patients with symptoms and low oxygen levels can reach the hospital on time with the necessary oxygen support available in the auto-rickshaw during the transit.

It is to be mentioned by the Lions Club member that auto-ambulance services of the Lions Club of Guwahati can be availed free of cost to any reachable destination within the city and surroundings through a booking over prescribed telephone numbers – 9435688888 and 9435035000 which are available 24X7.

Here are some of the other places outside Assam, where people are using their auto-rickshaws as ambulances:

• One such exceptional solution came from Mohammad Javed Khan, a 34-year-old auto-rickshaw driver in Madhya Pradesh's Bhopal. He sold off his wife's jewellery and used the money to convert his three-wheeler auto-rickshaw into a small ambulance that he offers to patients for free treatment. His auto came fully equipped with an oxygen cylinder, a PPE suit for those helping a COVID-19 patient, sanitisers, and basic medicines.

• In late March, when the number of new cases started to surge, a school teacher and part-time auto-rickshaw driver, saw an enormous rise in cases. He then turned his three-wheeler into an auto ambulance for COVID-19 patients in Mumbai. "I drop off corona patients to Covid Care Centre and the hospital for free of charge, and also bring discharged patients from the hospital and Covid Centre to their respective homes," he said.

• In the city of Belgaum, a 41-year-old man named Manjunath Pujari made a name for himself as being a nocturnal auto ambulance. He has been ferrying pregnant women to people who have suffered a heart attack for nearly a decade. As the number of COVID-19 cases in the state surged, he began to transport those patients as well. "So far I would have ferried more than 300 patients to hospitals on various occasions," he said.

Meanwhile, Assam has recorded 3,245 fresh COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. The total case count in the state shot up to 4,06,868. The overall positivity percentage is 4.53% and the recovery rate is 85.97%.

Also Read: Jorhat Bihu Committee uses cancelled Bihu Funds to Buy Ambulance

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