Maharashtra’s Highway Mrityunjay Doot initiative has helped save 2,671 road accident victims since its launch on March 1, 2021. The programme has mobilised 4,118 volunteers to provide immediate assistance at accident sites and help transport injured people to hospitals.
One such volunteer is Sanjay Gaikwad, who rescued a father and son after a truck struck them while they were travelling to Karanja village to sell vegetables. Responding to information about the crash, Gaikwad reached the location, helped move the injured duo onto a stretcher and arranged their transfer to Government Medical College and Hospital in Nagpur. Both survived, earning appreciation from local residents.
Government figures show that 929 volunteers have received training certificates across five highway police ranges. These include 40 in Thane, 23 in Pune, 36 in Raigad, 540 in Nagpur and 290 in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
Conceived in 2021 by Dr Bhushankumar Upadhyay, Additional Director General of Police (Highways), the programme aims to bridge the gap between an accident and the arrival of professional medical assistance. Its focus is on ensuring that victims receive timely help during the critical initial minutes.
Participants come from diverse backgrounds, including petrol pump staff, roadside hotel and dhaba employees, shopkeepers, villagers, residents along highways and traffic police personnel. The highway police, together with the Resilient Foundation, conduct training in first aid and emergency response. The foundation has organised 36 training sessions across 19 districts.
Yugandhara Kajare, co-founder of the Resilient Foundation, said the initiative seeks to equip ordinary citizens to respond effectively during emergencies. “We train volunteers in first aid, emergency rescue methods and CPR,” she said, referring to programmes held in Pune, Nagpur, Dhule and Aurangabad.
Highway traffic police personnel Kiran Matkar recalled assisting a critically injured passenger after a bus accident at Malshej Ghat. “I have helped save three lives in different incidents after undergoing the training conducted by the Resilient Foundation,” he said.
Kajare added that the foundation had recommended supplying volunteers with additional rescue equipment to strengthen their response capabilities.
Source: The Free Press Journal
Pic Credit: Hindustan Times
