To strengthen preparedness and response to public health emergencies and disasters, Karnataka’s Health Department launched a state-of-the-art Health Emergency Operations Centre (HEOC) at Arogya Soudha in Bengaluru on May 7.

Established under the Union Government’s Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM), the HEOC will function as a centralised command and control facility for surveillance, coordination, resource deployment and decision-making during health crises.

The initiative follows lessons learnt during the COVID-19 pandemic, which exposed gaps in coordination, real-time surveillance and rapid response systems. Karnataka is among the first major States in India to operationalise such an advanced public health facility. 

Central command unit

Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, who inaugurated the centre, said the HEOC would serve as a central command unit to ensure timely decision-making, efficient utilisation of resources, and dissemination of accurate information during emergencies.

He said the need for such a system was strongly felt during the pandemic, when lack of coordination emerged as a major challenge. Referring to outbreaks, fire accidents and natural disasters, the Minister said the command and control centre had been established in line with World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.

According to officials, the HEOC will operate round-the-clock through an integrated, technology-driven framework aimed at shifting emergency management from a reactive approach to a pro-active and preparedness-based system.

The facility is equipped with a central operations room, high-resolution video wall, video conferencing systems, emergency call handling systems, data servers, networking infrastructure, and real-time dashboards for monitoring and response coordination. The centre, spread across about 235 square metres within Arogya Soudha, has been designed to support continuous operations during emergencies.

Coordination with multiple agencies

The HEOC will coordinate with multiple agencies, including the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), State Disaster Management Authority, police, fire and emergency services, district administrations and other departments involved in disaster response and public health management.

Officials said the centre would function through four operational stages — watch mode, alert mode, response mode and post-event recovery mode — depending on the nature and severity of emergencies.

Co-ordination with other departments

The Minister said the HEOC would facilitate co-ordination not only within the Health Department, but also among Revenue Department, State Disaster Management Authority, police and fire and emergency services, during a crisis.

The centre will enable immediate communication with district administrations and district health services. The State Government plans to expand the system through a hub-and-spoke model linking district-level units., the Minister said.