The Government of India (GoI,) on the 19th of February, launched an emergency number for the citizens of India.
The integrated support system, with a single emergency number, 112, will be helpful for the citizens during all kind of emergencies. This number has made it easier for people to reach out to the concerned authorities such as the police, ambulance, fire brigade, etc.
Previously, there were multiple emergency numbers in India, which included 100 (Police,) 101 (Fire Brigade,) 102 (Ambulance) and 108 (Emergency Disaster Management.) However, the scenario changed after the GoI launched the new emergency number.
The emergency number was launched as a part of the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS.) The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing designed the support system number to help people across India.
How can you connect to the Emergency Response Centre (ERC?)
To connect to and register your emergency with the ERC, all you need to do is dial 112 or press the power button of your smartphone thrice to place the emergency call.
In case you have a normal feature phone and not a smartphone, you can press 5 or 9 and get help from the ERC. Another way is to connect to the ERC is through the 112 India app, through which you can raise a request, following which, the app will send an alert message with your location data and make an emergency call automatically.
Where in India is 112 functional?
In India, 11 states, including Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Nagaland, have the ERSS services.
The States where the ERSS services were launched, organised and set up a dedicated Emergency Response Centre (ERC) with trained executives who can handle emergency situations.
The GoI provided approximately Rs. 321.69 crores for the launch of the ERC services in India.
The ERC services, launched under the Nirbhaya Scheme, aim to ensure the safety of citizens, especially women and children.
