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Cyclone Ditwah: India sends NDRF teams to Sri Lanka; readies forces along TN, Puducherry coast
Under Operation Sagar Bandhu, the teams—comprising 80 rescuers and four canine units—took off from Hindon Air Base aboard an Indian Air Force IL-76 aircraft
New Delhi: India on Saturday deployed two specialised National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams to Sri Lanka to support search, rescue and relief operations in regions affected by Cyclone Ditwah, officials said.
Under Operation Sagar Bandhu, the teams—comprising 80 rescuers and four canine units—took off from Hindon Air Base at 4.06am aboard an Indian Air Force IL-76 aircraft. The contingent is led by P.K. Tiwary, Commandant of the NDRF’s 8th Battalion. The NDRF’s 8th Battalion had also been deployed to Turkey during the 2023 earthquake and to Myanmar this year.
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“The teams are equipped with inflatable boats, hydraulic cutting and breaching tools, communication gear, medical first-aid kits and other specialised humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) equipment,” a spokesperson at NDRF said.
Officials said the international deployment comes even as the NDRF has shored up its domestic readiness along vulnerable stretches of the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts in anticipation of heavy weather.
NDRF officials said a total of 14 teams have already been positioned in Tamil Nadu’s coastal districts, including Villupuram, Chengalpattu, Tiruvallur, Nagapattinam, Tiruvarur, Thanjavur, Pudukkottai and Mayiladuthurai. Additional teams have been earmarked for Puducherry, while 10 more are on their way to Chennai from the NDRF’s 5th Battalion (Pune) and 6th Battalion (Vadodara).
“The NDRF headquarters is conducting continuous monitoring and coordination with the India Meteorological Department (IMD), National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), state governments, the Ministry of External Affairs and other agencies to ensure a seamless response both at home and abroad,” the spokesperson added.
This is the fourth time India has sent its rescuers abroad for a rescue mission. The previous instances were the 2015 Nepal earthquake, the 2023 Turkey earthquake and the 2025 earthquake in Myanmar..
