Bhubaneswar: Odisha Government has announced the extension of the “Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) (DIAL-112)” scheme for another five years, from the fiscal year 2025-26 to 2029-30.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has approved the proposal of the Department of Home. Accordingly, Additional Chief Secretary, Home, Satyabrata Sahu has issued the notification
This critical national platform, which integrates emergency services like Police, Ambulance, Fire, and Women and Child helplines under a single number (Dial-112), aims to ensure rapid and coordinated responses to distress calls across the state.
The extension comes with a substantial total outlay of Rs. 2260.89 crore, allocated for both Police and Fire Organizations in the State. Of this, Rs. 1573.99 crore is earmarked under Administrative Expenditure and Rs. 686.90 crore under Programme Expenditure.
Key objectives of this five-year extension include:
- Project Extension: To ensure uninterrupted and efficient emergency response services.
- Manpower: Approval has been granted for the creation of 4,195 new posts in various ranks, subject to clearance from the Finance Department, for full-fledged implementation of the scheme statewide. This also includes the establishment of a Mirror Emergency Response Centre (MERC).
- ERV Deployment: A total of 645 Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs) are to be deployed, with regular ASIs serving as in-charge instead of retired officers. Hiring of these vehicles will only occur after ensuring sufficient manpower for operation.
- Infrastructure: Construction of buildings for the State Emergency Response Centre (SERC) in Bhubaneswar/Cuttack and the MERC at Sambalpur will be undertaken to ensure disaster resilience and 24×7 public service.
- Integration: Any other similar schemes involving vehicle hiring under women’s safety initiatives (e.g., Subhadra Surakhya Yojana) shall be merged with ERSS to avoid duplication.
- Monitoring: The Home Department will frame Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for ERV utilization and will conduct monthly monitoring of individual ERV performance and key performance indicators (KPIs) to ensure reduction in emergency response times.
- Evaluation: A third-party audit and impact assessment will be conducted to ensure optimal utilization of resources.
The ERSS (DIAL-112) scheme was initially approved for two years (2019-2020 to 2020-2021) , followed by a second phase of four years (2021-22 to 2024-2025). This latest extension underscores the state government’s commitment to strengthening its emergency response infrastructure.