Dainik Bhaskar check finds 17 of 32 ambulances in Ranchi out of order

Dainik Bhaskar checked 32 ambulances at 21 locations in Ranchi, Jharkhand, and found 17 not working, with only 15 recorded as running. According to the report, 8 of the vehicles were standing in garages.

Sumit Basu, project head of the Samman 108 ambulance service, told the paper that Ranchi district has 44 ambulances, of which 38 are operational. The newspaper's check, published while 108 staff in the state are agitating over their demands, found a different picture.

What the check found

• At Sadar hospital, one of three ambulances had been faulty for five months because its engine would not start.
• At RIMS, two of three ambulances were out of order, one for a month and another with a bad battery.
• At Pithoria, one ambulance had no tyre; at Mandar, two were faulty, one reportedly for about a year.
• At Bero and Ormanjhi, both ambulances at each centre were found faulty.

Of Ranchi's 10 ALS ambulances, the report says oxygen cylinders and several other essential items were missing, and three of five neonatal ambulances did not have working incubators. Civil Surgeon Dr Amarendra Kumar said no faulty 108 ambulance had come to his notice and that any such vehicle would be sent for repair.

Why it matters for ambulance owners and drivers

The report points to maintenance and equipment checks as a recurring weak spot in district fleets.