Describe the National Disaster Response Force, how it reacts to situations like pandemics, floods | RBI Grade B Phase 1 Preparation - Bank Exams PDF Download

Describe the National Disaster Response Force, how it reacts to situations like pandemics, floods, and earthquakes.

The National Disaster Response Force, or NDRF, was established on January 19, 2006, and that date is commemorated every year. The NDRF has more than 15000 personnel working for the protection and security of the nation spread across 12 distinct battalions in 12 different places. The DG of the NDRF is an IPS officer under whom 18 specialized search and rescue teams function. These teams are trained in rope rescue, flood rescue, collapsed structure search and rescue, and many other activities that help save lives during calamities. Recently, the NDRF has inducted a batch of 100 women disaster commandants. The NDRF doesn’t only serve our own country during the disasters but also sends relief material to other nations in need. The latest example is the cyclone hit Fiji where about 6 tons of relief material were sent in a short span of time.
Globally, earthquakes result in the loss of more than 50000 lives every year. The Himalayan highlands also experience a lot of landslides. India's approach to disaster management has changed over time. In the beginning, only emergencies were used to establish the disaster relief departments. The complete focus was on relief and not prevention. In the 1990s, India started thinking about a permanent institutionalized set up following which the NDMA ie; National Disaster Management was constituted with a job to frame policies and approve a national plan. This is their way of emergency management. The center distributes relief funds for a range of emergencies. The NDRF has five stages, the first of which is preventive, which involves making efforts to avert an occurrence. The next action that helps lower the likelihood of an emergency is mitigation. Preparedness comes next that helps a community improve its ability to respond. The fourth step is Response where actions may include activating the emergency operations, evacuating threatened populations, opening shelters and providing mass care, emergency rescue and medical care, fire-fighting, and urban search and rescue. Then comes Recovery which aims at taking life back to normalcy.