There is nothing wrong with having a drink or two with a fellow friend. But there's a time and a place to do so.
However, in this case, both the time and place were wrong. An ambulance driver took a brief halt to pour himself and an injured passenger a drink on the way to the hospital in Odisha.
The shocking incident was captured on video by onlookers and posted on various social media platforms on December 19.
The driver stopped his vehicle near a highway in an area called Tirpol. He then started making pegs of an alcoholic drink. There was also an injured patient with a cast on his leg lying on a stretcher inside the ambulance.
To everyone's surprise, the driver made the injured patient a drink as well. When confronted, the driver said that the patient himself asked for a drink. Both of them consumed their drinks, and the ambulance driver started the vehicle and took off nonchalantly. There was also a woman and a small kid inside the ambulance.
The driver had put four lives at risk. According to reports, it was a private ambulance. Therefore, the hospital authorities cannot be held responsible. The police reached a dead end as well. The Inspector in charge said that no formal complaint has been lodged. An investigation will be launched only if an FIR is lodged. However, the residents of the area have demanded strict action against the ambulance driver.
Drunk driving is considered a criminal offense according to Section 185 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
(Input from various media sources)