Ambulance drivers at forefront in fight against COVID-19

In the fight against the outbreak of coronavirus not only health workers and doctors are taking the lead, but the ambulance drivers who are always on a move to attend medical emergencies are also at the forefront.

In Kashmir witnessing health emergencies on a daily basis is not new for the ambulance drivers.

During 2010 and 2016 Kashmir unrest they were on the forefront ferrying injured people to hospitals and carrying staff and doctors.

But in the wake of a lockdown after the outbreak of coronavirus it is a bigger challenge with allegations that they are facing difficulties to go about doing their duty.

“There are difficulties we are facing to move around, roads are blocked with concertina wires at many places, and it is purely the wish of the security forces manning such places to either allow or not to allow our movement,” an ambulance driver on the MA road in Srinagar.

In the last three decades of turmoil in Kashmir, ambulances have played an important role in keeping the hospitals running under challenging circumstances.

During 2016 Kashmir unrest seven ambulances drivers were reportedly injured and around 200 ambulances were damaged.

Clearly efforts of health workers and ambulance staff who are at the forefront in the battle against coronavirus must be respected, they are doing a tough job and should not become a target of the people or the security forces on the ground.(IANS)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Kashmir Monitor staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)