Air Ambulance

The state-run Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) will now serve as the nodal agency for setting up helipads as well as starting air-ambulance facilities, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said on Wednesday. Shinde, who is the chairman of the MADC, made the announcement after holding a meeting of its board of directors, said an official release. Efforts are underway to set up an aviation training centre near Belora in Amravati district, and Tata Group's Vistara airline may set up the centre, it added. Shinde also issued instructions to set up helipads near police residential colonies. The chief minister also directed officials to complete the legal procedure to take back the control of operations of airports at Latur, Nanded, Baramati, Dharashiv (Osmanabad) and Yavatmal from private companies, the statement said.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Friday launched the state's first air ambulance service from Ranchi to other parts of the country. Soren flagged-off the service for which an aircraft of the Redbird Airways has been taken on lease, an official of the state civil aviation department said. The service will be provided at rates between Rs 3-8 lakh for places such as Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Varanasi, Lucknow and Tirupati. Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister said, "The service is an effort to provide timely better treatment to seriously ill people. The state government is also contemplating to extend the service to those who are unable to afford the fares." The state civil aviation department has set up a cell for the air ambulance service which can be availed through phone calls and emails. "The cell has received more than 250 calls enquiring about the service," he said. Soren said his administration intends to establish helipads along major roads

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The incident takes place a month after DGCA lays down new norms for air ambulances