Karnataka to get first Good Samaritan Bill - Fusion - WeRIndia

Karnataka is going to get India’s first Good Samaritan Bill as President of India Ram Nath Kovind approved it.

The bill will give protection to good Samaritans that help accident victims in emergency medical situations in Karnataka.

In order to encourage people’s helping nature to save the accident victims in ‘golden hour’, the Government of Karnataka wants to give legal protection.

That’s why the new bill is made and sent to the approval of the President. With this, Karnataka becomes the first state to get this bill.

Road accidents in India are increasing and more than 1.5 lac people died from accidents in 2016. Karnataka stood in the top five position as several people died in road accidents in 2016 and 2015.

To protect the lives of victims, the response of other people at the accident spot is crucial.

Health experts say that the first hour is very vital to save the lives of accident victims. In this situation, Karnataka government wants to introduce the Karnataka Good Samaritan and Medical Professional (Protection and Regulation during Emergency Situations) Bill, 2016.

Under this law, those who help accident victims in a timely manner will be given financial help. They will be exempted from repeated attendance in courts and police stations in the event of their mandatory attendance.

Moreover, expenses for such things will be taken care of from ‘Good Samaritan Fund’.

Those who help the victims need not wait for anybody. They can leave the hospital immediately once they join the victims.

First aid is mandatory in such cases. All government and private hospitals should have to do it immediately as per the new law.

Rather than clicking of the photos of the victims, people should help the victims immediately. The bill is mainly intended for that purpose.

Government assures that good Samaritans will not be harassed in any manner.

Image credit: President Cyril Ramaphosa visits India, 26 Jan image by GovernmentZA is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0

Image Reference: https://www.flickr.com/photos/governmentza/46902171211