Single Emergency Number '112' Will Be Activated From 1st January In India

The single emergency number "112" will be operational all through India from January 1 to help individuals reach immediate services of police, ambulance, and fire department. "Single emergency number '112' will be operational from January 1," a senior government official told PTI.

Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has endorsed the procurement of a single number for different crisis benefits that would be similar to the "911" in the US. The service will also be available even through those SIMs and landlines whose active call services has been barred or suspended.

A man in trouble should call just 112, which will guide the call to concerned divisions quickly for help. All current crisis numbers will be eliminated within a year of taking off 112, depending upon the awareness about this facility. In India, different emergency communication and response systems are in place - police (100), fire brigade (101), ambulance (102) and Emergency Disaster Management (108).

"Telecom operators have been asked to direct all emergency calls to 112. The process to direct calls made on to 112 to concerned departments is being worked out," the official said. A user will be able to make communication even through SMS and the system will learn about the location of the caller that will be shared with the nearest help center.

Individuals will be able to feed "112" in panic button framework which will also be made accessible on all smartphones and other mobiles from January 1 under law. The panic button will enable users to make an emergency call or send alerts to multiple numbers just by pressing a button. It's noteworthy that the government has made it mandatory for all smartphone providers to incorporate an inbuilt GPS system in all smartphones from 2018.

The emergency service calls will also be supported through a call center like facility, which will have representatives speaking in Hindi, English and the local language. "At present, there are call centers which handle emergency number calls. They will be asked to handle calls on 112 as well. Besides, the requirement of additional capacity is being worked out which will be in place by January 1," the official said.

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