New Delhi: India is sending a contingent of 80 NDRF personnel for aiding relief and rescue work in earthquake-hit Myanmar, officials here said on Saturday.
Personnel of the federal disaster contingency force are being deployed under Operation Brahma, with quake rescue equipment such as strong concrete cutters, drill machines, hammers, plasma cutting machines etc to provide succour to the neighbouring country.
“A team of 80 NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) personnel are being sent to Myanmar aboard two IAF (Indian Air Force) sorties from Hindon in Ghaziabad. Both teams are expected to reach Nay Pyi Taw by Saturday evening,” an official told PTI.
Commandant PK Tiwary of the 8th NDRF battalion based in Ghaziabad near Delhi is leading the Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team.
NDRF Deputy Inspector General (Operations) Mohsen Shahedi told reporters during a press conference organised by the external affairs ministry that the next 24-48 hours were “very crucial” for the force to get “gainfully engaged” and for their “active involvement” on ground.
He said a third team of the force had been kept on standby in Kolkata and it could be airlifted to Myanmar as soon as required.
The two NDRF teams reaching Myanmar are also taking along four rescue dogs for the collapsed structure search and rescue operation being undertaken according to International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) norms, the officials said.
India has deployed NDRF personnel abroad on two previous occasions — during the 2015 Nepal earthquake and the 2023 Turkiye quake.
Myanmar and neighbouring Thailand were rocked by a high-intensity earthquake on Friday, destroying buildings, bridges and other structures. At least 1,002 people were killed in Myanmar, according to reports.
About 15 tonnes of relief material was sent by India on Saturday to the Myanmarese city of Yangon on a C130J military transport aircraft of the IAF.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday expressed concern over the devastating earthquake and said India stood ready to offer all possible assistance to the two countries.
India shares a 1,643-kilometre-long border with Myanmar on the eastern side.
