New Delhi : The Delhi Metro Thursday installed Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) at two stations to provide emergency treatment if a passenger suffers a cardiac arrest.

"The AED is a portable electronic device that automatically diagnoses a potentially life-threatening cardiac arrest in a patient. The medical equipment treats patients through defibrillation -the application of electrical shock to allow the heart to re-establish an effective rhythm," Arindam Sen, CEO, Opto Circuits (India) Ltd said.

To start with, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) along with Opto Circuits (India) Ltd, a manufacturer of medical equipment and interventional devices, has installed AEDs at the two biggest interchange stations - Central Secretariat and Kashmere Gate.

This will be followed by training for a group of DMRC staff.

"At least one incident of medical emergency in a month is witnessed in DMRC. AED will be of great use particularly at a crowded station. We have started with two Metro stations. Later, we will provide this facility to other Metro stations as well," Anuj Dayal, Metro spokesperson said.

The AED's have already been installed at all the six stations on the Delhi Airport Metro Express line.

As per medical experts, an estimated 40 million Indians suffer from at least one cardiovascular disease or disorder, making them susceptible to sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).

"If cardiac arrest patients are not attended to immediately, they can lead to irreversible brain damage within three to five minutes. Defibrillation systems such as AEDs enable the detection and identification of life-threatening arrhythmias and when appropriate, deliver a shock to restore the normal heartbeat," Vanita Arora, senior consultant cardio electro physiologist, Max hospital added.