Jammu and Kashmir will from October 2019 get a 24X7 free ambulance service which can be availed during medical emergencies, including critical, trauma patients, accident victims, pregnant women and sick children.

An official on 31st July said that the the State Administrative Council (SAC), which met under the chairmanship of Governor Satya Pal Malik on 30th July night, approved operationalisation of the 102-108 Toll Free Ambulance Service in the state. ''102-108 free Ambulance Service will provide round the clock transportation to the patients requiring immediate medical care especially critical, Trauma, accidental victims, pregnant women and sick children,'' he said.

He said the intervention will prove to be a boon in saving precious lives by providing timely medical care to people, particularly residing in far-flung and difficult pockets of the state. ''The State Government will bring a fleet of 416 Ambulances under the ambit of this service, which will be operationalised through a centralised Call Centre working on 24x7 basis,'' he said.

He said the 102 Ambulance Service will provide free of cost service to the targeted population (pregnant women, sick children etc). ''Under no circumstances, any user fee will be levied from any targeted beneficiary for providing transportation services,'' he said. He said 108 Ambulance Service is predominantly an emergency response system, primarily designed to attend to patients of critical care, trauma and accident victims etc.

''Dedicated centralised Call Centres, one each at Srinagar and Jammu, would be established to run 102-108 Ambulance Service in the State. The services of Call Centres would be outsourced for which the J&K Medical Supplies Corporation Limited had floated the tenders and finalised the Rate Contract. The 102/108 project will be operational by October 15, 2019,'' he added.