Gandhinagar: The Gujarat government on Friday announced a significant step to boost emergency medical response by integrating 542 general ambulances into the state’s 108 ambulance service. These ambulances, currently stationed at various health institutions, will now be operated under the 108 system to facilitate inter-facility transfers (IFT) and attend nearby emergency cases.

The fleet includes 118 ambulances from Primary Health Centers, 310 from Community Health Centers, 59 from Sub-District Hospitals, 31 from District Hospitals, and 21 from Medical College-affiliated hospitals.

The 108 emergency service currently operates 800 ALS/BLS ambulances and 38 ICU-on-wheels across the state. With the addition of 119 new 108 ambulances this year and the inclusion of the 542 reallocated vehicles, the state’s total emergency ambulance fleet will now rise to 1,499—aimed at ensuring faster and more efficient emergency medical services.

Benefits of deploying 542 ambulances in the state:

• • In the last two years, 108 services have provided medical assistance to 28,69,115 people in the state. The inclusion of 542 ambulances will significantly strengthen emergency healthcare response.
• • The current daily workload for inter-facility transfers is approximately 350–400 cases. Currently, the response time is 21.04 minutes in rural areas and 11.26 minutes in urban areas. With the e•xpanded fleet, the aim is to reduce the average state-wide response time from 16.5 minutes to 10 minutes.
• • Integration through the Smart Referral System (SRS) will enable real-time tracking of critical patient transport, ensuring that patients are taken to the right hospital at the right time.
• • Ambulances previously stationed at hospitals will now be made available through the 108 service, ensuring optimal utilization of vehicle resources and better availability for both general and critical emergencies.
• • A standardized system—with uniform medicines, consumables, trained personnel, and medical equipment in line with standard SOPs—will ensure consistent, high-quality pre-hospital care during inter-facility transfers and incident responses.
• • Emergency service availability in remote and rural areas will be enhanced, allowing quicker access to ambulances.
• • Real-time data integration and comprehensive performance analysis will support future planning and system improvements. All ambulances will be GPS-enabled for location tracking and monitoring.
• • The 108 system is centrally managed and linked to the CM Dashboard, allowing for effective coordination, especially during disasters or epidemics.
• • From now on, all data related to patient referrals and ambulance usage will be centrally available through a single organization: 108 EMRI GHS.

The state government has allocated an annual budget of ₹104.77 crore to operationalize this expanded system under the 108 service. This includes integrating 542 ambulances with existing emergency protocols, training, manpower, and operational management across Gujarat. DeshGujarat