Ride-hailing major Ola on Monday said it has partnered with Haryana government to launch Ola Emergency' on its app in Gurugram to enable essential medical trips.
The launch in Gurugram comes closely after Bengaluru, Vizag, Bhubaneshwar, Nashik and Varanasi. The company plans to expand the service to other major cities soon. The service allows riders to book non-COVID-19 medical trips, which do not require ambulance.
With the implementation of the lockdown across the country to contain the spread of COVID-19, the government has allowed only people in essential services like healthcare, banking and media to commute.
"Ola Emergency is available in Gurugram starting today with a dedicated network of cars that are equipped with masks and sanitizers and will be operated by specially trained drivers. Over 100 hospitals have been mapped on to the app to provide the service to ensure that trips are made from homes to hospitals and vice-versa," Ola said in a statement.
To book an Ola Emergency' cab, users can select the 'Ola Emergency' category and enter the drop location from a list of available hospitals in the city.
"Trips to hospitals for medical urgencies are unavoidable, even in the current times. With Ola Emergency, we are able to facilitate trips to and from hospitals across the city through the Ola app," an Ola spokesperson said.
The service will be available 24x7 and will provide citizens with a reliable, convenient and safe transport solution for medical trips that do not require an ambulance, the spokesperson added.
Ola said it is facilitating a clean and safe ride experience by ensuring that all registered driver-partners on the network are trained to follow proper sanitary measures, including wearing masks and frequent usage of hand sanitizers that cars have been equipped with.
"We will continue to work closely with various state governments to ensure that people across cities can avail this service to access essential medical care," the spokesperson said.
Customers will be charged a nominal fare according to the rate card to compensate driver-partners for their services, Ola said.
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