AIIMS Rishikesh successfully tests air ambulance landing, service starting soon

The new facility is aimed to provide emergency medical services in far flung areas.

In an initiative to improve health care facilities in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Rishikesh, on Tuesday, successfully conducted test landing of an air ambulance service in the premises of the hospital.

Professor Ravikant, director of AIIMS Rishikesh after the successful trial of the air ambulance facility on Tuesday (HT Photo)

After getting permission from the director general of civil aviation (DGCA), a six-seater helicopter made a test landing at the hospital on Tuesday. Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat will soon inaugurate the facility in a formal launch.

This facility will help improve health care facilities in the state, as patients in serious condition in far-flung areas can be brought to the hospital through the air ambulance.

Professor Ravikant, director of AIIMS said that earlier, helipads of IDPL and at Jollygrant were used to bring patients from remote areas of the state to AIIMS. He added that with this initiative, AIIMS Rishikesh will become the first government health institute in the country with an air ambulance facility.

As part of the trial run, the hospital director along with Captain Deep Srivastava, the civil aviation advisor to the government of Uttarakhand flew from Jollygrant to AIIMS Rishikesh.

Dr. Madhur Uniyal, in-charge of aviation and air rescue services of AIIMS Rishikesh said, “Our hospital stands completely with the state government to provide immediate treatment to the victims of disasters and road accidents in any part of the state. We are working with determination in this regard and for that, a helipad has been made on campus to save the lives of critical patients.”