Punjab to implement scheme of giving reward of Rs.5K to Good Samaritans for saving lives of road accident victims

Chandigarh: Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Mann led government has decided to implement a new scheme of giving a reward of Rs.5000 to those Good Samaritans who help in saving the lives of victims of road accidents.

Transport Minister S. Laljit Singh Bhullar and Health & Family Welfare Minister Dr. Balbir Singh took this decision during Punjab State Road Safety Council meeting, held here at Punjab Bhawan. Under this scheme, the individual, who saved the life of a road accident victim, will be given a “Good Samaritan certificate” by the doctors or police, which will enable him to claim the amount though the Deputy Commissioner office.

Punjab State Road Safety Council Chairman S. Laljit Singh Bhullar said that this scheme will motivate people to actively help road accident victims. The basic aim of the scheme is to motivate the general public through cash awards and certificates in order to help road accident victims in emergency situations and to boost their morale and to save lives of road accident victims, he added.

During the meeting, the “Traffic Management Plan” worth Rs.2.56 crores was approved for Amritsar, the second largest tourist attraction in the country. With this amount, procurement of ambulances and recovery vans and other related facilities would be done besides the setting up of “Road Safety and Accident Response Units”. Cabinet ministers highlighted that with the implementation of this project, the traffic congestion problem in Amritsar city will be alleviated and the city will become more beautiful on a global map.

S. Laljit Singh Bhullar informed that Rs.4 crore has been allocated to the Deputy Commissioners of the state under the first phase for the “District Road Safety Committees.” He said that larger districts will get Rs.20 lakh each, while the smaller districts will get Rs.15 lakh each for implementing road safety and traffic management measures. This amount will be utilized by the Deputy Commissioners for undertaking various road safety and traffic management measures and also for awareness campaigns.

Health & Family Welfare Minister Dr. Balbir Singh informed that five trauma care centers in the state will be equipped with new machines to provide prompt medical care to the road accident victims as the gap analysis of the equipment has already been done. He mentioned that three out of ten lives can be saved with dedicated institutions and modern emergency facilities, hence the five trauma care centers at Khanna, Jalandhar, Pathankot, Ferozepur and Fazilka would be strengthened. He said that recruitment process for dedicated staff in these centers is under process.

Both the ministers instructed the officials of the transport department to ensure First Aid Kit in government vehicles, besides first aid training to the government drivers for providing timely assistance to the people in need during emergency situations. They also asked to keep a dedicated lane at toll plazas for ambulance passage during traffic congestion.

Cabinet Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar further revealed that 500 e-challaning machines have been provided to the Traffic Police for speeding up the process of issuing challans and 2500 more such machines will be given soon. He informed that challaning through CCTV cameras in Mohali will begin from this December.

He said that all the black spots identified during the year 2019-22,
have been removed, while the work of rectification of new 277 black spots is going on a war footing.

Prominent amongst those who were present in the meeting included Secretary Transport S. Dilraj Singh Sandhawalia, Director General Lead Agency Mr. R. Venkat Ratnam, ADGP (Traffic) Mr. A.S. Rai, Secretary Expenditure Mr. Mohammad Tayyab, Punjab Health Systems Corporation MD Mr. Pardeep Aggarwal, State Health Agency CEO Ms. Babita and officials of NHAI, PWD, Health and Family Welfare and Punjab Mandi Board.