With frequency of disasters increasing in the country, premier combat force NDRF is set to procure some high-end gadgetry worth about Rs 58 crore including some versatile machines like snake-eye camera, LED balloon lights and deep penetration ground sensing radars.
"India is a country which is hit the hardest by disasters. We are ranked number three on this list of recorded incidents of disasters after the US and China. All that I am trying to say is that disasters are a very very regular phenomenon in terms of intensity and frequency (in India) and that is why India is going to be a response-based country for another 5-10 years," NDRF Director General O P Singh said during the Force's annual press conference here.
The DG said the about 12,000 personnel-strong National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is preparing and gearing up to sharpen its technology and manpower responses.
"We are learning a lot from disasters and hence we are trying to prepare ourselves better," he said, adding the force has sent proposals worth Rs 58 crore to the government to procure some smart gadgets.
Singh said the Force is looking to procure sharp snake-eye cameras which can smartly slip into crevices and small openings in rubble to see and find out people who are trapped inside.
The Force will also obtain inflatable LED balloon lights which can light up crammed and dark areas like mines and collapsed tunnels in case a rescue operation has to be launched. A ground sensor radar which can detect life and activities 20 metres deep into rubble and a 'pneumatic shoring system' will be purchased to hold the falling structure and ensure the safety of rescue teams that enter a collapsed structure.
In order to shore up communication facilities during disasters, Singh said the NDRF has recently got and has started deploying Quick Deployable Antennas (QDAs) on which quick and smooth voice and data can be sent for use by rescuers working in disaster zones.
In order to better cater to disaster challenges on the northeastern flank of the country, a new NDRF base will become operational from near Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh beginning January 15, he said.
The NDRF is also testing two smart equipments, one for
de-contamination of an area affected by a chemical, biological or radiological attack and the other is a see-through wall detector which can relay signals about the presence of any person behind a wall from 20 metres.
"Getting new technical equipments is our index for success in the coming days," the DG Singh said.
He said a global assessment report on disasters has said that at present 4.8 million people (about 50 lakh) are affected every year by disasters in India, the figures could dramatically rise to 19 million by 2030.
He quoted reports to say India spends USD 9.8 billion (about Rs 64,680 crore) every year to combat disasters in various states in challenging geographical features and terrains.
The NDRF, in 2015-16 financial year, also procured 21 new types of equipments worth Rs 42 crore, he said.
Singh said the Force is making good use of social media to reach out to victims of such disasters and it did some successful reach out in this regard by using platforms like Twitter, email, Whatsapp and Facebook during the recent floods in Chennai.
When asked about the Forces' response in a scenario where the national capital is hit by a disaster, the DG said his teams are on alert every minute and they can respond in 20 minutes from their nearest base in Ghaziabad.
However, he said, the prerogative to call in NDRF lies with various state governments and the actual response by its teams depends on prevailing traffic and other situations.
"It has to be mentioned that we are not the first responders. We are requisitioned when a state government asks the Centre," he said.
The NDRF, Singh said, is also providing psychological training to its personnel who come back after energy draining rescue operations where they have to see bodies and distress.
He said the force is enhancing its capacities by undertaking regular community capacity building programmes with various stakeholders.
Singh said the Force, which has 11 operational bases in the country, is also looking to have a dedicated air connectivity through the military aircrafts of the Indian Air Force.
Talking about cooperation in this area amongst SAARC countries, the DG said a unified disaster response force of these neighbouring countries "may fructify in the next 4-5 years."
We are working in this direction and recently we had the first-ever joint exercise between the SAARC countries in Delhi, he said.
The Force said during the year, it undertook 168 relief and rescue operations and rescued over 51,000 people including a major operation when its teams were sent to Nepal in the aftermath of a powerful earthquake that struck the Himalayan nation.
