Police and Volunteers Save Lives with Training in Emergency Care
India has by far the world's highest number of road accident fatalities. On the congested streets of Delhi, for example, traffic accidents cause 2,000 deaths a year. But in this city of 12 million people and across the nation, 80 per cent of the injured receive no emergency medical help within the first vital hour after the accident. Traffic congestion and a shortage of emergency medical expertise contribute to the high death toll. Piyush Tewari is determined to save thousands of lives by ensuring that most accident victims in Delhi receive rapid medical care.

His foundation, in partnership with hospitals and a medical science institute, has already provided training sessions in basic life support to over 2,000 police officers, as well as 500 ordinary citizens. Thousands more people will receive training and Tewari's campaign will be further strengthened next year when he opens a call centre with full-time staff who will locate trained volunteers close to the scene of accidents and arrange for immediate assistance to be given to victims.