GUNTUR: Some 1,000 lives were saved due to the quick response given by the Emergency Management Research Institute (EMRI) which operates `108' emergency service during the first 120 days of its operations, said EMRI Chief Executive Officer, Venkat Changavalli.

Speaking at the launch of the service in Guntur on Sunday, he said that EMRI received more than 5.25 lakh telephone calls out of which, 12,000 calls pertained to emergencies. "The average time taken from the call receipt to reaching the hospital was 30 minutes," he said.

Even though India suffered drawbacks like absence of a proper legal framework to encourage citizens who report about the happening of a crimeand fear of legal hurdles faced by the doctors attending emergencies, EMRI was started to address all types of emergencies in a public-private partnership.

EMRI would soon operate from its dedicated service centre being built at Hyderabad. About 76 people would be working round the clock at the centre to provide services.

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