Nine districts in state to have 1800 trained home guards for disaster readiness

Mumbai: In order to be prepared to tackle natural disaster, especially during the monsoon season, 1800 home guards will be the first responders for providing immediate relief to the victims in affected areas in Maharashtra

Mumbai: In order to be prepared to tackle natural disaster, especially during the monsoon season, 1800 home guards will be the first responders for providing immediate relief to the victims in affected areas in Maharashtra.

Mumbai, India - July 18, 2021: People and vehicles wade through the flooded street due to heavy rain on LBS Road at Sion, in Mumbai, India, on Sunday, July 18, 2021. (Photo by Pratik Chorge/Hindustan Times) (Pratik Chorge/HT PHOTO)

The director-general of the Home Guard has designed a training programme for the selected candidates for the age group of 18 to 35 years and are being trained by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) of Maharashtra.

Director-general, BK Upadhyay of Home Guard said, “Before monsoon arrives, around 200 trained home guards have been assigned in every district and will be deployed at every Taluka to help citizens during natural disasters.”

The trained home guards will be deployed in areas like Raigad, Ratnagiri, Pune, Kolhapur, Satara, Sangli, especially the Konkan belt, which is heavily susceptible to floods during monsoon. In the last decade, several instances of natural disasters have taken place, killed many people, and witnessed huge property losses, added Upadhyay.

In every district during any natural disaster like floods, landslides, or any risks arising from such incidents, home guards will be the first responders.

They will be taught all required skills like helping people during the landslide and taking precautionary measures as per the situation, types of boats and boat navigation, types and uses of different ropes and knots, using a life jacket as well as understanding the momentum of waters, using rafts, using walkie-talkie and basic skills like administering first aid, and affected populace to nearby hospitals. These are five days of training with practical and written exams, said a senior IPS officer.

During any natural disaster like floods, cyclones, landslides, high tides, and mitigating risks, the National Disaster Relief Force, (NDRF) is called. But they take a few hours to reach the site. Therefore, modelled on the lines of NDRF, the SDRF was made in every state which is a specialised force to respond to natural disasters. In Maharashtra, SDRF has a strength of 428 trained personnel and officers, with two companies being stationed in Nagpur and Dhule districts, said additional director general Brijesh Singh.

“We required manpower and trained people who could provide help immediately till the time SDRF or NDRF reached the site, especially in the Kokan belt, ‘’ said Singh. Another advantage for making them trained is that they are local residents and are aware of geographical location as well as local government hospitals in the area if required they could reach in the minimum time, said Singh.