New Delhi, Aug. 13 -- The National Highway Authority of India has mandated that ambulances deployed on all of its projects must reach crash sites within 10 minutes when the incident is within 10 km of toll booths, failing which a Rs.10,000 penalty will be imposed for each delay. The authority has also set a one-hour limit for accident victims to reach the nearest hospital after an emergency ticket is accepted, with a Rs.10,000 penalty for every delay.

For incidents located farther away, the permissible time will increase proportionately based on distance. Compliance will be checked through GPS data and the NHAI Care dashboard, with a Rs.10,000 penalty for each incident where the prescribed time is exceeded.

Under the new norms announced...