Bhubaneswar: With an aim to reduce road accident deaths, Odisha government today decided to provide free treatment to mishap victims at three private hospitals with L1 (Level -1) trauma care facilities in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.

In the initial phase, three privately-run hospitals - Apollo Hospitals and AMRI in Bhubaneswar and Ashwini Hospital in Cuttack - have been asked to give free treatment to road accident victims. “The State government will bear the medical expenses of accident victims for 48 hours after their admission into these three hospitals,” said Health Secretary Pramod Kumar Meherda.

Subsequently, these facilities will be extended to other cities of the State as well. “In the next phase, the State government will include private hospitals in Sambalpur, Rourkela and Berhampur to provide treatment to accident victims,” he added.

Sources said the State Transport department has given Rs 4 crore to Health department to launch the initiative.