Daily Pioneer: New Delhi: Wednesday, September
12, 2018.
Having first-aid box is mandatory in all
public transports including buses, but sadly, the buses run by the Delhi
Transport Corporation (DTC) either have empty first-aid boxes or the medicines
and bandages kept in these boxes are often expired. An RTI disclosed that DTC
bus depots has not purchased medicines since last three years and the first-aid
boxes installed in its large fleet of 3882 buses are for only name-sake.
According to the data shared by the DTC
to an RTI query filed by the activist Zeeshan Haider, out of 39 DTC depots only
10 depots have timely purchased medicines for first-aid kits. Around 16-17
depot is there which have not purchased medicines since last three years.
Moreover, there are some 10 depots such as both Raj Ghat-I and II, Kalkaji
depot, BBM-I, Bawana and other remaining depots which have not purchased
medicines since 2012.
Interestingly the Raj Ghat depot- II was launched in the year 2015 as a smart
depot. "The depot was set up in 2015 and the depot has not purchased
medicines for the fir-aid kit installed in the buses that run and maintained by
the depot," the RTI reply stated.
As a matter of fact, emergency medicines
such as burn heal; Dettol, Soframycin, cotton, tape roll, bandage and
antiseptics are kept in the first aid boxes installed in the DTC buses.
When contacted , a senior DTC official
said, "As per the motor vehicle act, it is mandatory to install first aid
box in the buses and to purchase respective medicines every year. Also, the
corporation provides special training to the conductors on the use of first-aid
box. So, there must be some negligence or lapse behind the reason because
whenever a depot request for medicines, the Regional manager sanction fund as
per the need. However, the department will take serious cognizance of this
matter and action will be taken."
The bus depots in the National Capital
are divided on the basis of region such as South, North, West and East and
every region has one head of depot which takes care of the remaining depots
that come under the head. Such Vasant Vihar is head depot of South region,
Mayapuri for west and Nand Nagri in East and Wazirpur depot in the North
region.
"Secondly, the first aid is
installed only just because it is mandatory, otherwise no one will keep it.
Yes, it is a precaution step but most of the time, it is not used and go waste.
Either the conductor or the driver takes it to their home. Also, some depots
purchase medicine in March and some in September as per their requirement. And
most of the time depot managers forget to renew the package if they have the
medicines pending with them. Moreover, the 50 percent of the medicines which
are purchased to be kept in the box do not have an expiry date or have a long
expiry date such as scissor, rolled banded, cotton and others such as savlon,
dettol liquid and soframycin or betadine tube have one or two years expiry
time," added the official.
As per the Motor Vehicle act, one first
aid box should have sterilized finger dressing, hand or food dressing,
sterilized large or body dressing, one extra large, two large and three small
sterilized burn dressings, two 15 grams packets of sterilized cotton wool, a
bottle of 2 per cent, tincture iodine, a bottle of Sal Volatile, empty bottle
fitted with eye drops and 55 grams of Medicine glass and other article/medicine
prescribed as considers to be necessary for providing first-aid facilities.
"The buses do have a first aid box
but these are seldom used because in DTC or clustered buses, whenever a mishap
happens, passengers consult us even if
we offer them help. Also conductors keep medicines but are hardly used"
said a DTC bus driver, pleading anonymity.
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