Bhubaneswar, June 10: Around 70 police officials today underwent basic life support and first-aid training at a private hospital in the city.

They were taught how to carefully tackle accident cases and provide them first aid.

Attending the inaugural ceremony of the programme, chief secretary Gokul Chandra Pati said administration of proper first aid immediately after any mishap could save a lot of lives.

"The first-aid training programme for police officials will be of great help as the cops would be able to attend to a victim immediately after a mishap and before they are shifted to a hospital," said Pati.

Police officials deployed in anti-Naxal operations and other special drives also took the training.

Sanjeev Marik, director-general of police, appreciated the initiative taken by the hospital. "We are trying to hold more such programmes in future," said Marik.

The officials were taught how to treat people found in semi-conscious or unconscious state with breathing difficulties or those with head or spinal injuries, suffering from seizures or those bleeding profusely. They also learnt how to provide first aid to people, who had suffered multiple fractures or poly trauma or amputation or taken poison, drugs and so on.

"We got trainings on how to tackle some common conditions such as headache, fever, diarrhoea, nose bleeding, fits or seizures, fainting and heat disorders, animal bites, asthma, eye injury," said a sub-inspector in the special operation group Ashutosh Mallick.

Sailesh Dungdung, a havildar, said the training helped him learn a lot of things. "We got to know how to treat somebody when he or she suffers a stroke, fracture, burns and scalds. Such training should be provided to all policemen," said Dungdung.

During the programme, the chief secretary inaugurated a blood bank in the hospital.

In another development, a behavioural training was also held for the police personnel at the commissionerate building. It was conducted following the Monday incident when a cop of Lakshmisagar police station was manhandled by slum dwellers of Haladipadia.

The men in khaki are being imparted training in meditation, yoga, spiritualism as well as behavioural change. "We want our men to be more tolerant, responsive and humane in their approach," said police commissioner R.P. Sharma.