Lucknow, Sep 28 (IANS): In a new initiative, the Uttar Pradesh police personnel will now be trained in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to enable them to save lives on time during crisis.

Uttar Pradesh DGP Mukul Goel, who attended a workshop organised by iCARE (Cardiac Arrest Resuscitation for Everyone), Mumbai, with Dr Aditya Kapoor, head of the department of cardiology at the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS), and head of cardiology department at KGMU, Dr Sudhanshu Dwiwedi on Monday, said that, "As first responders, policemen should be well versed with the perils of cardiac arrest and should receive training in CPR. This will help save many lives."

He further said that by learning medical first aid procedures, police personnel can help civilians in case of a sudden cardiac arrest, outside a hospital. CPR training will be extended to zones and range levels and will also involve public participation.

Dr Aditya Kapoor said every year nearly 2 million people in the country die suddenly at home or at public places due to what is medically known as "sudden cardiac arrest" (SCA).

"Although those suffering from SCA can be saved by bystanders, they often do not survive due to zero public awareness and knowledge on how to handle such emergencies. Delay in initiating lifesaving measures by bystanders decreases the chances of survival by 10 per cent," he said.

Dr Sudhanshu Dwivedi said that across the world, police personnel were trained for bystander resuscitation since they were in close proximity to the public at all times and were best suited to provide immediate assistance.