New Delhi: Lauding NDRF personnel for their commendable efforts in assisting people in the "most challenging circumstances", Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said India is making many efforts to "strengthen disaster management apparatus" in the country. The prime minister said this while greeting the National Disaster Response Force on its raising day today.
"Raising Day greetings to @NDRFHQ.They are making commendable efforts to assist people in the most challenging circumstances. Their bravery is admirable. India is making many efforts to strengthen disaster management apparatus including building disaster resilient infrastructure," he said in a tweet on the Raising Day of the NDRF.
The NDRF is a specialised force capable of responding to any disaster in the country. It came into existence on January 19, 2006. Union Home Minister Amit Shah also extended his "best wishes" to the NDRF "breavehearts". "My best wishes to the Bravehearts of the @NDRFHQ on the occasion of their Raising Day. The journey of the NDRF abounds with exemplary acts of courage and commitment to professional excellence. I salute them for all the lives they saved imperilling their own," Shah tweeted.
Meanwhile, Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai alleged that when the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) when it went to West Bengal to give succour to the people during the 2020 Amphan cyclone. Rai said this while speaking at the 18th Raising Day celebrations of the NDRF. He neither elaborated further nor specified from whom the negative support was received. The federal contingency force was established on this day in 2016. Severe cyclonic storm Amphan wreaked havoc in May, 2020 in West Bengal with winds gusting up to a speed of 185 km across many parts, killing around 100 people in the state.
"Big damage is done due to small mistakes but no one cares about it and sometimes the NDRF is not able to get the desired result. "However, I will request the NDRF that like in the past you have shown courage during disasters by even not caring for your comfort, not caring for your respect, you have gone beyond your call of duty, especially during Amphan and we saw the NDRF did so much to save Bengal, probably in the face of negative support it was getting..."
"Had NDRF not shown the courage...it was not that someone was deliberately putting the lives at risk... but there was less trust on the forecast made by agencies but the NDRF never thought about all this and it decided that if the forecast is there, we have to keep ourselves prepared (to undertake its work in West Bengal)," he said.
The institutions led by the Prime Minister have fought big disasters effectively and I want to thank all institutions that work unitedly during disasters, he said. The NDRF has 16 battalions and 28 regional response centres (RRCs), comprising more than 18,000 personnel across the country. (with Agency inputs)
