Bangalore: The city may go the Mumbai way by the end of this year — about 100 Life Patrols, one within a 1.5-km distance from the other, ready to respond to emergency situations, including road accidents.

Accidents can strike any time. You could be mugged late evening in Cubbon Park, knocked down by a car or crash into another, or left badly injured in an attack. There may a fire at home or in the building you work in or you may be marooned after a heavy rain as it happened in some suburbs last year.

"Even under the best circumstances, for the police, ambulance or fire engine to reach a spot may take up to 30 minutes. In the case of an accident, the `golden hour' of starting emergency treatment after being injured may be missed," says Diwan Rahul Nanda, Chairman and Managing Director of Topsgroup, a security solutions group.

The company launched Topsline service in Mumbai a year ago. Its personnel came to the help of law enforcement agencies during the floods in that city last year.

While security arrangement and first aid care are mandatory in industries, such facilities may not be readily available in an apartment building or a commercial complex. As it happened a year ago when fire broke out in a four-storey commercial complex near Kempe Gowda Road here, says Mr. Nanda. The narrow approach road made it difficult for fire tenders to reach the building fast and damage was done to the property before the fire was put out.

Like Fire and Rescue Services Personnel, Topsline teams will be equipped with motorcycles to reach congested localities fast. "We are mainly supplementing what the official emergency service agencies do,'' Mr. Nanda says.

Topsgroup is now in discussions with the State Government and the local police and emergency services to introduce the concept here. "All teams will have one former defence officer as commander, at least one armed officer, a combat officer, trained and certified paramedics and a doctor on call. They will be linked to a command and control centre through geographical positioning system and radios,'' Mr. Nanda says. The teams have been trained under the guidance of partner, Emergency Response Training Inc. of the U.S.

Topsline service will be through memberships.

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