Uttrakhand Government ordered deployment of SDRF on Char Dham route

Mar 26, 2014, 12:13 IST

Harish Rawat has ordered deployment of newly constituted SDRF personnel in the danger zone that is prone to disaster, during Char Dham Yatra.

Harish Rawat, the Chief Minister of Uttrakhand on 25 March 2014 ordered deployment of State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel in the danger zone that are prone to disaster. The newly constituted SDRF will be deployed during the Char Dham Yatra in full strength. Route of the Himalayan shrines located in the state are considered as prone to disasters.

Apart from this, Harish Rawat has also reminded the state officials to complete the road repair work along the pilgrimage route by its deadline on 30 April 2014.

The Char Dham Yatra of the Himalayan shrines is scheduled to begin in the first week of May 2014. The Kedarnath pilgrim will be opened for the devotees on 5 May 2014.

Background
This order of deployment of the Disaster Response Force was passed following the cloud burst, flood and landslides that occurred in the state on 16 June 2013. Following the same, earlier, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) had identified 50 danger zones in the state, which are slide-prone in districts of Chamoli, Rudraprayag and Uttarkashi. In its suggestion it had asked the state for deployment of SDRF in large numbers, who will keep be vigilant to prevent such losses, during such incidents.

State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) in Uttarakhand
The State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) was constituted by the state on the lines of NDRF a few months back, after the state suffered a huge natural calamity. In 2013, the state government’s preparedness failed to handle the natural calamity in the state. The members of the SDRF are those who have been trained to manage the crisis period.