Abid Naveed, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sindh Integrated Emergency and Health Services, is concerned about the public’s ‘irresponsible behavior’ hindering emergency medical aid and patient evacuation.
Naveed points out that an alarming 93 percent of calls received by Rescue 1122 are either fake or unrelated, posing significant obstacles for genuine emergency cases.
On a daily basis, Rescue 1122 receives an average of 14,000 to 15,000 calls. However, out of these, only 1,000 are legitimate emergencies. The remaining 93 percent disrupt the service, impeding those in actual emergency situations from receiving prompt assistance.
Among the callers, there are instances of children accidentally dialing the emergency number using their parents’ mobile phones. Some misuse the service to test their phone’s microphone or hands-free capabilities. Surprisingly, there have even been cases of women calling to request biryani recipes.
These callers strain the Rescue 1122 network, resulting in busy lines and inconveniences for those genuinely in need of immediate assistance.
Naveed emphasizes the importance of raising awareness in society about the proper usage of emergency services. If necessary, legal and technical measures can be implemented to prevent unnecessary calls to Rescue 1122.
While blocking the number of repeat offenders is a potential option, it should be noted that this approach could also hinder them from accessing Rescue 1122 during genuine emergencies.
23 crore+ awaam to bana li, lekin majority jahil.
Why not take legal action against those who are deliberately abusing the facility, every SIM is issued on a CNIC, it shouldn’t be that difficult if they want to. Instead of crying about call being fake, they should have spent their energies better to think up solutions.