108 Service

It was 2: 30 am.  The night was silent and hot.  The silence was occasionally breached with the barking of the stray dogs from far away.  The house was near a state highway but in the remote corner of a hill near Thimmempet.  Inside the home, the aged father was restless with some kind of nausea and pain.  As his condition was deteriorating, the married daughter too was here to look after him, from her home leaving two little kids to her husband. Every time she had a glance at her father, she got more scared. The son was uneasy and felt that nothing could be done for his father at those terrible hours. 

Suddenly he remembered something and took his mobile out to dial “108” without much hope.  After two three rings, someone answered in Hindi.  The son stuttered. And after few seconds, a voice in Tamil asked “Entha District pa?” for his relief.

Within 5 minutes, the son got a call from the driver of 108 Ambulance Service, asking about his exact whereabouts. 

By 3:25, he was at the Vaniyambadi General Hospital along with his father and sister.  The doctor at duty checked the patient and advised to take him to Vellore.  The journey continued and the patient was successfully admitted in the hospital by 5:00 am….

This is how my security in-charge took his father to Vellore for treatment, without spending a naya paise and without any hassle at an odd hour.  Best part of it was when he went to pay some rupees, he found both the driver and the attender fast asleep in the ambulance. 

You too can dial “108” in case of emergency, but only

-to save a life

-to report a crime in progress

-to report a fire.

Google out to know more about 108 service, and why it is 108???? Some interesting facts!

TK Rafeeq Ahmed, Vaniyambadi