Hyderabad: Chief Minister Revanth Reddy on Friday launched the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), as part of the ongoing Prajapalana Vijayotsava celebrations. The initiative follows a review conducted by the Chief Minister in response to the recent floods in Warangal, Khammam, and other areas.
“The state has established a specialised team, similar to the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), to address natural and man-made disasters. The SDRF has been set up with a 2,000-strong workforce, comprising 1,000 personnel each from the fire department and the Telangana Special Police (TSP) Battalion, to ensure efficient disaster management. The SDRF personnel will be trained by the NDRF team,” said Y. Nagi Reddy, Director General of Fire Services. Three hundred SDRF personnel were present at the event.
Revanth Reddy flagged off 81 vehicles, including those of the fire department vehicles. The event also saw the inauguration of SDRF boats, with teams demonstrating various formations on the water.
The state government has allocated Rs 35 crore for the initiative, which will be used in providing disaster management equipment including fire vehicles, boats and in providing comprehensive training for the SDRF personnel.
“Initially, there were only 50 personnel from the fire department in the Telangana Disaster Response team; now the government has planned to increase it to 2,000, which will be of major help to the state in times of disasters. The SDRF contingents are currently undergoing training, and soon all the contingents will be trained,” said a senior official from the fire services department.
