Live
- Jagannath Swamy Rathotsavam to take place tomorrow in Banjara Hills
- YSRCP is a closed chapter says Kotamreddy Srinivasulu Reddy
- Mobile tariff hike: Centre responds to misleading claims
- Surrogate mothers also have right to avail maternity leave: HC
- Stage set for grand Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath in Puri
- Amarnath Yatra temporarily halted due to heavy rain
- Prez to witness Rath Yatra on July 7
- ACE: Pioneering engineering excellence
- Tight security arrangements in place for Bonalu festivities
- HMWSSB gears up for Bonalu fest in Golkonda
Just In
NDRF trains, deploys first forest fire fighting teams
![](/images/authorplaceholder.jpg?type=1&v=2)
![NDRF trains, deploys first forest fire fighting teams NDRF trains, deploys first forest fire fighting teams](https://assets.thehansindia.com/h-upload/2024/03/10/1429216-ndrf.webp)
A parliamentary panel had in 2022 expressed its concern over forest fires not being officially a part of disasters tackled by the specialised national force
New Delhi: NDRF Director General Atul Karwal has said the force has trained and deployed the first contingent of its 150 responders who can undertake forest fire combat operations even as it has also sought the Union Home Ministry’s permission to get them further skilled in the domain from a foreign country. A parliamentary panel had in 2022 expressed its concern over forest fires not being officially a part of disasters tackled by the specialised national force.
“The forest fire fighting teams are trained now and we are equipping them. Three teams of 50 people each are now deployed with our first battalion based in Guwahati, 10th battalion located in Vijaywada and the battalion number 15 in Uttarakhand,” Karwal told PTI during an interview. “A fourth such team is under training currently and it will be designated as a reserve unit,” he said.
Karwal said, “We are also coordinating and requesting the ministry of home affairs (MHA) to get them trained aboard, in countries which suffer from this disaster the most. We can learn from them how to tackle forest fires effectively.” The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) official said the force will undertake fire extinguishing operations, drawing the ‘fire line’ in the forest to contain the spiralling inferno and help in the rescue of the people, who are trapped in this disaster that can either be man-made or natural.
Forest fires, a parliamentary panel had said, is a growing threat globally now. The incidents of forest fires not only damage the forest resources but also damage the biodiversity, cause climate change, adversely impact tribal livelihood and lead to severe distress among flora and fauna of forests, the panel had said. In view of the increase of these incidents in the country, it had said the forest fires should be “expeditiously” added to the list of disasters tackled by the NDRF. “Due to the limited capacity of the forest department to fight huge forest fires, it is high time that the same is tackled by a highly trained force on disasters,” it had said.
The panel’s recommendation came in the backdrop of the massive fire that erupted in the forests of Dzukou valley, Nagaland in 2021.
![](/images/logo.png)
© 2024 Hyderabad Media House Limited/The Hans India. All rights reserved. Powered by hocalwire.com