Blinkit Sets ₹2,500 Fee for Non-Emergency Ambulance Trips

Blinkit will charge ₹2,500 after each non-emergency ambulance transfer, while keeping emergency rides free, Eternal Vice Chairman Deepinder Goyal announced on November 5. Goyal said the fee is intended to keep equipped ambulances and paramedics available for urgent calls and is broadly in line with private ambulance rates. The charge applies to routine trips such as medical checkups, hospital visits and transfers from hospitals to homes. Goyal said these bookings had become a growing share of use and could keep vehicles and trained crews occupied when they were needed for emergencies. The fee is collected after the trip. Goyal said Blinkit’s ambulance service handled about 42,000 cases over the two years before the announcement, including about 20,000 emergency cases, without charging users. The figures were provided by Goyal; the reports carrying them trace to his announcement. Proceeds from the charge will go to Eternal Foundation, which runs the ambulance service, Goyal said, and will support its expansion. He identified the availability of trained paramedics as a major obstacle to scaling the operation. Blinkit is increasing its training academy’s capacity, according to...