The Full form of NDRF is National Disaster Response Force. As the name suggests, NDRF is a specialized force constituted or established U/S 44 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, for the purpose of quick and specialized response to a threatening natural or man-made disaster situation such as earthquake, flood, landslide, etc. The NDMA (National Disaster Management Authority) is the “Apex Body for Disaster Management” in India.
The Prime Minister of India itself is the chairman of the NDMA. The Director-General is designated as the head of NDRF, who is an IPS officer on deputation basis. As of now, NDRF consists of 12 battalions, each of which comprises 1149 personnel. It is organised on para-military lines, and is manned by persons from the para-military forces of India: 3 CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force), 3 BSF (Border Security Force), 2 ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police), 2 CISF (Central Industrial Security Force), and 2 SSB (Sashastra Seema Bal).
Each battalion is capable of providing rescue teams of 45 personnel and 18 self-contained specialist search personnel each including technicians, engineers, dog squads, electricians, and medical/paramedics. These battalions are located in different states of India, which include West Bengal, Assam, Odisha, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar and Arunachal Pradesh. These NDRF personnel are fully equipped and trained in response to any kind of disastrous situations in India.