Himachal Pradesh becomes first Indian state to launch a single emergency number “112”

Himachal Pradesh has become the first Indian state to launch a pan-India single emergency number ‘112’ where all kinds of immediate help can be sought in urgent matters. Under this project, an Emergency Response Centre (ERC) has been established in Shimla along with 12 District Command Centres (DCCs), covering the entire state. The ERC has been integrated with police (100), fire (101), health (108) and women (1090) helpline numbers to provide emergency services through the emergency number ‘112’. The service is part of the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) which includes a ‘112 India’ mobile app integrated with panic button of smartphones and ERSS state website for ease of citizen in availing immediate assistance. To ensure safety of women, ‘SHOUT’ feature has been introduced in ‘112 India’ mobile app to seek immediate assistance from registered volunteers in the vicinity, apart from immediate assistance from ERC. Soon, the single number for various emergency services will be gradually rolled out across the country.