Maharashtra to form disaster management teams in districts to tackle emergencies

THANE: The state govt will establish independent, trained disaster management teams—modeled on the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF)and Thane Regional Disaster Management Cell (RMDC)—in most districts and key municipal bodies, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced on Friday. These teams will serve as the primary responders during emergencies, he said during a media briefing on the pre-monsoon preparedness in Thane district.“Two NDRF teams have already arrived in the district and will be stationed in Thane and Kalyan during the monsoon,” Shinde said. “We’re also working on replicating the Thane RDMC model across major districts and municipal bodies. These teams are trained to assist the NDRF teams and will be useful in starting initial rescue operations before the units arrive at any emergency rescue spot during the rains.”The district collector and resident deputy collector have been appointed as nodal officers for monsoon response coordination in Thane. Following this, Shinde directed the district and respective municipal administration to implement preventive measures in their respective jurisdictions and ensure a swift response to any form of emergencies, aiming for “zero casualties” during the rainy season.He said drain and culvert cleaning—especially under railway lines—is underway and will be completed before the monsoon. Agencies including the MMRDA, PWD, and MSRDC have been asked to expedite roadworks and meet deadlines. The MSEB is tasked with maintaining power lines to prevent outages, while health departments have been instructed to stock essential medicines.All govt agencies have been asked to identify and evacuate occupants of dilapidated structures in their jurisdictions. Structural audits of hoardings are to be conducted, with unsafe and illegal ones removed. Tree pruning has also begun in several cities to prevent rain-related accidents.Addressing waterlogging hotspots, Shinde ordered the deployment of pumps and boats to aid in drainage and emergency rescue operations.