Dikhyaa Mohanty 
The Odisha Assembly was told today by Health and Family Welfare Minister Mukesh Mahaling that the state presently has 860 operating ambulances, including 411 Advanced Life Support (ALS) and 449 Basic Life Support (BLS) vehicles. Balasore MLA Manas Kumar Dutta had asked for district-by-district information on ambulance availability, the number of new ambulances planned, and specific data for the Balasore district, including problems with referral cases to SCB Medical College and Hospital. The update was given in response to his query.
According to the Health Minister, a plan to replace 421 ambulances has been accepted, and purchase orders have already been issued. Mahaling described the situation in Balasore, stating that there are 61 ambulances in the area, 15 of which are ALS and 46 of which are BLS. 21 ambulances—seven ALS and fourteen BLS—have been stationed within 30 kilometers of the Balasore District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) in order to improve emergency medical access. At the DHH itself, there is also a BLS ambulance and an ALS ambulance.
“These measures are intended to address complaints of ambulance unavailability, especially for critical SCB referral cases,” the Minister continued.
