Silchar, Oct. 1 -- The Assam government has directed all district commissioners and senior superintendents of police to ensure that ambulances and other emergency vehicles are not obstructed for VIP convoy movements, following a row over an ambulance being halted in Silchar to make way for chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's convoy.

The directive, issued through a formal order by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), also states that the chief minister's convoy may be paused, if required, to allow emergency vehicles to pass immediately.

Sarma had apologised on Wednesday to a patient and his family after the ambulance carrying them was stopped to make way for his convoy in Silchar, following which four police personnel were suspended for a...