Why Emergency support and services in India needs improvement?

I never thought that I will ever write about the situations of emergency services in India, but today I felt, I ought to convey my experience through the medium of the blog. I hope this experience will reach some people and will help them. My experience is about poor emergency services in India especially related to the GAS LEAK. We want fast food, fast service, and fast learning, then why not emergency service response?

GAS LEAKAGE?

A gas leak at home can be an extremely scary affair. Once that pungent smell hits the nostrils, panic sets in because any flame might spark an explosion.

What steps I have taken when it hit me: (Necessary step we must take)

1.  We are a family of three. all of us sensed the same Pungent smell, we confirmed the source, It  was through the gas cylinder.
2.  As a primary step, we opened all the windows, doors and removed the cylinder and took it to the balcony (Aerial part of the house).
3. I poured some water in the nozzle to check whether a source is a nozzle or not. I found microbubbles coming through the nozzle.
4. We put the lid on the nozzle, and a closed the lid with a wet cloth to reduce the danger. (The Girl on the Phone suggested.)

Now, these steps we can perform as a precautionary measure, but we cannot live in that environment for a longer time. If the gas enters the eyes, it causes itching and burning. Inhaling LPG vapor at high concentration even for a short time can cause fainting and/or death. Inhaling of LPG vapor can cause irritation in the nose and throat, headache and nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and loss of consciousness. LPG vapor can cause fainting and choking in closed or poorly ventilated environments.

What actions we can take?

I was using the HP gas connection. I first opened the domestic gas consumer card and tried calling the supplier number for immediate help, As usual, they didn't pick up the phone, again, unfortunately, it was Sunday, fortunately, all this happened in the afternoon that day. The time was 14:38.

This step is really frustrating, as a second step, I took the receipt, generally provided by the service provider after the refill is delivered. I checked the receipt carefully and I found the 10 digit emergency mobile number. At that point, I felt really relieved that finally some hope I got. I called on the emergency number and I was shocked to hear, "the number you have dialed is invalid". I thought I could have made a mistake while dialing. I tried again, this was my second attempt, the tone on phone was "the services to this number are temporarily on hold". The time was 14:48

Sometimes, In an emergency, nothing works! we all experience it.

I did not stop and quickly switched to another option Internet (The best option). I searched for "an emergency number in case of a gas leak in India", it was 1906. 

I readily dialed the number, It was airtel tone on the phone They told me that they do not email or ask for OTP to update the details, I was like c'mon this is an emergency.

It is not over yet, after dialing and selecting the option of choosing language 1 2 3 on 1906, finally, I thought it’s the time when I can talk to some authority, the tone was, “all the routes on these lines are busy", I nearly waited for three minutes and then communication started. 

It started in a pretty casual way, like consumer number, address, mobile number, all details and she told me to wait until the complaint registers, as she said I will receive a message on my registered number once the complaint gets registered.

I kept on waiting and the call disconnected, It was really disappointing, "are you joking" I made through all this and it was a half call. they didn't even bother calling me back.

I assumed that I have shared all the details on the phone. So, very soon I will get an SMS of confirmation and complaint number, It was only an assumption. The time was 15:02.

I realized it is taking too much time. I have to call them back and this time it was fast I chose a different number it was general complaint number (1800 2333 555). I got through the HP receipt. It was to check my complaint registered or not.

The fortunate part in 2nd call was the safety tip received over the phone. (point 4) and my complaint was finally recorded, still, I didn't receive any of the messages, but got a compliant number over the phone. The time was 15:16.

All the above processes took a lot of time, this is a golden time in case of emergencies. I was relieved finally, the action will be there, but, It wasn't over yet.

I got a phone call on my registered number from customer care and she asked me did you get any message and did your problem get solved? The time was 16:13. I said no.

She then did something on her portal. she said the mechanic will be on his way to fix the problem and I asked her how much time it will take for a mechanic to come, she said: "we can’t say, we cannot commit". It was very unpleasant to hear from the persons who work at emergency services.

I got the message (confirmation of complaint registration) and after 10 minutes at 16.23, it was like the mechanic will arrive at your place within an hour.

after 10 more minutes, I got a call from the service provider, It was like, "Hey, will it be ok if it takes an hour to come and check the problem", I was like no, send him now, my gosh it is emergency. 16:33

In the next 20 minutes, the mechanic arrived, He checked the issue finally, the issue was the safety valve in the cylinder was broken and he replaced it and the gas leak stopped. 16:53.

Now I was in that environment for more than 2 hours inhaling the gas, with no response from emergency services, need to take efforts in the situation of panic. This is the current situation of one of Emergency services in India and I feel it must be improved. I have faced it, I don't want other people to face it.

In case of a gas leak: follow the safety tips given.

Indane, Bharatgas, HP Gas: LPG emergency leakage complaint number 1906. 

Centralized Emergency service cell -1906 is available with 24×7 operation, to attend all emergency calls related to LPG in local languages also. 

Tip of the Post: Check your service providers' emergency contact number, I hope it works.