State relies on centre’s War Book to manage war-like situations

The Union War Book is a manual that specifies the roles of various authorities in war time, including the police, railways, road and sea transport etc.

MUMBAI: Maharashtra does not have a plan to manage war and war-like situations; under these circumstances, it is guided by the Union War Book of the central government for civil response, and the National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP) prepared by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The state, however, does have a Disaster Management Plan to tackle other kinds of emergencies such as natural and nuclear disasters.

CM Devendra Fadnavis. (ANI Photo) (CMO Maharashtra X)

At a security review meeting on Friday, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis directed the state administration to study the Union War Book and disseminate the information to all the authorities concerned. The meeting was held hours before the ceasefire between India and Pakistan was declared.

The State Disaster Management Plan 2023 mentions the role of various authorities, from district collectors, to the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Management Authority, which is headed by the chief minister, among others.

One of the chapters focuses on measures to be taken in case of various natural disasters as well as industrial chemical disasters, and nuclear and radiological emergencies. It provides detailed information on what needs to be done in case of an accident at a nuclear facility leading to large-scale release of radioactivity.

However, the State Disaster Management Plan offers nothing in case of a war. “The role of disaster management comes in at a later stage. We come into the picture for relief work, and hence the State Disaster Management Plan doesn’t have anything specific relating to war. For instance, in a war, our work would be limited to dousing fires and rescuing people trapped under rubble in a coordinated response. All this is spelt out in detail,” said an official from the state disaster management department.

Sonia Sethi, additional chief secretary, disaster management department, did not respond to queries sent via text. IS Chahal, additional chief secretary, home, too did not respond to calls and text messages from HT.

An official from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) clarified that all states, not just Maharashtra, follow the Union War Book in war-like situations. “The subject of war directly relates to the central government. The idea of the Union War Book is to guide states on their response if a war breaks out,” he said.

The Union War Book is a manual that specifies the roles of various authorities in war time, including the police, railways, road and sea transport, health and emergency services, civil aviation, among other branches of the state. Devised after Independence, it has been revised periodically.