Ambulance of danger: Pangi’s lifeline on brink, locals demand immediate action
The only ambulance under the National Ambulance Service (108) serving the remote and mountainous region of Pangi in Chamba district is in a dangerously dilapidated state, prompting urgent appeals from residents for its immediate replacement.
The Pangwal Ekta Manch, a local community organisation, has written to Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, highlighting the critical condition of the ambulance stationed at the Killar Civil Hospital and urging swift action to replace it.
The vehicle, a 2015 Maruti Gypsy four-wheel drive, caters to more than 25,000 people spread across the vast 1,595 square km of the tribal Pangi subdivision. Two additional ambulances in the area, operated by the state Health Department, are used solely for referral services to transport patients out of the valley for advanced medical care.
A technical inspection conducted in February 2024 by Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) mechanics found the ambulance to be in severely unsafe condition, posing serious risks to patient safety.
Trilok Thakur, chairman of the Pangwal Ekta Manch, said the inspection report flagged multiple life-threatening issues, including structural damage, worn-out tyres and rims, engine failure, faulty electrical systems and non-functional steering and gearbox. The vehicle was deemed a “total loss,” with the report warning that it could no longer be relied upon for emergency medical services in such a challenging terrain.
“The body of the vehicle appears condemned. It cannot be trusted for emergency response in a region like Pangi,” the report stated, recommending immediate decommissioning and replacement to safeguard public health.
With no reliable emergency vehicle available, the lives of residents in urgent need of medical attention hang in the balance — making the demand for a replacement ambulance a matter of life and death.
Known for its extreme isolation and unforgiving climate, Pangi already suffers from a severely strained healthcare system, with acute shortages of both medical and paramedical staff. In such a setting, the absence of a functioning ambulance becomes even more critical.
Thakur reiterated that the Pangwal Ekta Manch is urging the state government to replace the condemned vehicle without delay — preferably with an Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulance — to better respond to medical emergencies in the high-risk and inaccessible tribal region.
