People Who Help Those Injured In Accident Now Won’t Be Forced To Disclose Their Identity
New Delhi : Now instead of seeing the injured person suffering in a road accident, you can freely perform human duty by taking him to the hospital. You will not have to pass through any inquiry in the hospital and you will also not be obliged to lodge your personal information with the police or the hospital. For this, the Central Government has issued a notification under GSR 594 (E).
According to the notification issued by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the person helping the injured will be given the status of ‘Good Samaritan’. A new section 134 (a) has been added to the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act-2019 to protect their interests.
It is clear that Good Samaritan will not be held liable for the injury or death of the injured person in the vehicle accident. No criminal or civil suit will be filed against him. Such people should be treated with respect.
They should not be discriminated against on grounds of religion, nationality, caste and gender. He will not be asked for name, address, identity, phone number or other personal information. However, he can voluntarily give personal information to the police or hospital.
If a Good Samaritan is willing to be a witness voluntarily, while interrogating him, the investigating officer will have to follow the rules and procedure given under section 134 (a). If the death of an injured is due to any negligence of Good Samaritan while providing medical treatment or while bringing him to hospital, he will also be questioned or examined under the provisions given under this rule.
In the notification, every government and private hospital has also been given the responsibility of conveying its rights to Good Samaritan. Hospitals have to display the rights related to the ‘Protection of Good Samaritan’ on websites and the entrance. It will be compulsory to write information in Hindi, English as well as in local language.
Good Samaritan is a person who provides emergency medical care or helps in non-medical care or takes injured to a hospital without any expectation of a reward with good intent, such person will be considered a Good Samaritan.
Deadly accidents in the country
4.6 lakh road accidents occur on average in the country
1.5 lakh people lose their lives in these accidents
