Vets, emergencies and costs

1962 animal ambulance: what it covers, state by state

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1962 is the toll-free number for the government's Mobile Veterinary Units: vans with a vet that go to farmers' homes to treat their livestock, run by each state under a central scheme12. Where states publish details, the vans work in the day (9 am to 5 pm in Karnataka and Rajasthan) and treatment is free, but no official page we read says the 1962 animal ambulance comes for pet dogs or cats51719. If your pet needs a vet now, go to one that is open, using our guide on what to do in a pet emergency.

What it is
The toll-free number for government Mobile Veterinary Units: a van with a vet, a para-vet and a driver, sent by a state call centre12
Pets
Not mentioned on any official page we read. Every one describes the vans for farmers and their livestock1568923
Timings
Vans work in the day: 9 am to 5 pm in Karnataka and Rajasthan. The 1962 line takes calls round the clock in Karnataka, Telangana and Kerala561723
Cost
Free in Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan. Kerala charges a nominal fee5612151923
Andhra Pradesh
340 vans. No official page we found gives timings or a fee38
Vans in India
4,019 running in 29 states and UTs (January 2026)3
On this page
  1. What the 1962 animal helpline is
  2. Does 1962 come for pet dogs and cats?
  3. 1962 ambulance timings and fees, state by state
  4. States not in the table
  5. How a 1962 call works, for farm animals
  6. Your pet needs a vet now: what to do instead
  7. Not fully clear yet
  8. Sources

What the 1962 animal helpline is

1962 is a free call to your state's animal husbandry call centre. It is part of the Livestock Health and Disease Control Programme run by the central Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD). The centre pays for the vans, and shares their running cost with the states13.

Each van, called a Mobile Veterinary Unit, carries one vet, one para-vet (a trained veterinary assistant) and a driver, with medicines and kit for diagnosis, treatment and minor surgery1. A vet at the call centre decides how urgent each case is, and whether to send a van14.

The aim is one van for every one lakh livestock4. DAHD counted 4,019 vans running across India in January 2026 3.

Does 1962 come for pet dogs and cats?

No official page we read says it does. The central guidelines describe vet care at farmers' doorsteps, on calls from livestock rearers and animal owners1. Every state page in the table below describes the service for farmers, livestock owners or dairy farmers5689142324.

Two services come closest. Gujarat's Karuna Animal Ambulance, also on 1962, treats injured animals and birds that have no owner, so it is for street animals, not pets16. And Rajasthan's animal husbandry minister said in August 2025 that anyone can call 1962 to bring the van home for a sick animal, but the release doesn't mention pets20.

So don't count on 1962 for a pet dog or cat. If you do call, ask whether a van will come for your pet before you wait for one.

1962 ambulance timings and fees, state by state

State (vans, Jan 2026)TimingsFeeWho it is for
Andhra Pradesh (340)3Not published. In Nellore district, each van makes about 5 trips a day8Not publishedFarmers: care at the farmer's door step8
Telangana (100 clinics, since 2017)6Call centre round the clock, all days. Van hours not published67Free for livestock owners6Livestock owners6
Karnataka (275)35Vans 9 am to 5 pm only. The 1962 line takes calls 24x7 5Free5Farmers' livestock5
Maharashtra (80)310Not published. After you call, the vet phones you within an hour to fix a time9Not publishedLivestock keepers910
Uttar Pradesh (520)3Not published on any official page we could openNot publishedNot stated. Agra district lists 1962 as its Mobile Veterinary Helpline11
Tamil Nadu (245)3Dindigul, June 2026: village camps 8 am to 2 pm, and emergency calls until 5 pm12Free12Livestock farmers1213
Gujarat (127)3Helpline 24x7 14. Karuna ambulance: 8 am to 8 pm, as of 2018 16Free1516Village vans: owned animals of livestock keepers1415. Karuna ambulance: injured animals and birds with no owner16
Rajasthan (536)319Vans 9 am to 5 pm, every day. Call centre 8:30 am to 4:30 pm (from October 2024)1718Free1719Livestock keepers1719
Delhi (3)322The department spent nothing on the vans in 2024-25 22. On 5 Oct 2026 it invited bids for an agency to set up the call centre and run them21Not publishedFarmers, as the scheme is written22
Kerala (29)323Call centre 24x7 23A nominal charge, amount not published. Special medicines and vaccines cost extra23Farmers' livestock23
Haryana (70)3Call centre 24x7. Vans in one shift, 12 noon to 8 pm, under the December 2023 contract24Not publishedFarmers and livestock owners24

States not in the table

DAHD's January 2026 list also counts vans in Madhya Pradesh (406), Bihar (307), Jharkhand (236), West Bengal (218), Chhattisgarh (163), Assam (159), Uttarakhand (60) and Jammu and Kashmir (50), among others. Punjab has none running3.

They are left out because we found nothing official on their timings, fees or who the vans serve. We checked Madhya Pradesh's department website, which doesn't mention 1962; we haven't yet checked the others.

How a 1962 call works, for farm animals

  1. Dial 1962 from any phone. The call is free12.
  2. Give your name, village, the animal and what is wrong. The call centre logs it917.
  3. A vet at the call centre decides how urgent the case is, and the nearest van is sent123.
  4. You get an SMS. In Maharashtra it names the vet who will come, and the vet calls you within an hour to fix a time917.
  5. The team treats the animal at your place1. In Karnataka, the 1962 line answers round the clock, but vans go out only between 9 am and 5 pm5.

Your pet needs a vet now: what to do instead

Not fully clear yet

Official sources disagree or leave gaps on these. Confirm before you rely on them.

Sources and how we check

Facts checked against the official sources below by Thapki. Written with AI help from the sources below, then checked line by line; the Thapki team reads and approves every page before it goes live. How we check

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