Furthering its aim to improve disaster preparedness in the national capital, the Delhi government is considering proposals to form an SDRF and set up a control room comprising staff from multiple agencies, officials said.

Delhi might get its own State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) if a proposal for its formation is accepted by the government, the officials said.

Revenue Minister Atishi has received a proposal from her department for constituting the SDRF team, owing to the national capital witnessing frequent tremors of late and the massive floods that affected parts of the city earlier this year. In a separate proposal, the revenue department has put forward the plan to set up a control room comprising operational staff from multiple agencies for better coordination during disaster situations. "The Centre has also asked states and union territories to raise an SDRF. The National Capital Region falls under seismic zone IV, and is quite vulnerable to earthquakes. We have also seen how Delhi grappled with floods this year and has also been witness to some really tragic fire incidents," an official said.

"The SDRF will be there to provide support to NDRF in such cases. We have proposed to have a contingent of 120 odd personnel in the force" he added.

In the proposal submitted to Atishi, the department has highlighted how other states like Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Gujarat have their own SDRF teams, the official said. "The SDRF, like NDRF, will be involved in rescue efforts in man-made or natural disasters. It will also mean that we will have our own manpower to handle rescue operations during fire, rain or building collapse incidents," the official said, citing how the SDRF of Uttarakhand was recently involved in the Silkyara Tunnel rescue operation. Asked whether the proposal also recommends fresh recruitment for the proposed SDRF, he said that as of now, the officials have proposed deputing personnel from the paramilitary forces and police, among others. "We have not proposed fresh recruitment since it would become difficult to accommodate them once they age. We have proposed that personnel can be brought on deputation to the SDRF, whenever it is raised, and then they can go back after serving her for five to seven years. The SDRF is the need of the hour," he said. The Yamuna river had reached an all-time high of 208.66 metres on July 13 this year. The situation had led to flooding in several parts of Delhi, including northeast, east and southeast districts and key spots like Tibetan Market, Rajghat, etc. Speaking about the proposed control room, the official said, "The police has a control room and the Delhi Fire Service has its own control room but sometimes it has been observed that there is a lack of coordination among them during critical situations." "During the G20 Summit here, a control room was set up at Humayun Road where operational staff from different agencies like police, fire, MCD, NDMC and other agencies was there. All the operations were quite smooth," he added.

In a similar way, the department has proposed setting up this control room for better coordination during disasters. "We have not proposed setting up a separate helpline but his could be an extended arm of the 112 helpline, which is still not very popular. The 100 and 101 numbers are still the most frequently dialled by people," the official noted.

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