Republic Day Parade 2020 to witness maiden NDRF tableau

The National Disaster Response Force will see its tableau, depicting its humanitarian efforts during catastrophes such as cyclones and floods, rolling down the Rajpath for the first time this Republic Day Parade.

The force was raised in 2006 for specific tasks of relief and rescue during natural and man-made disasters or similar life-threatening situations.

NDRF Director General (DG) S N Pradhan told PTI that it will be the first time that a tableau of the force will roll down the Rajpath here during the Republic Day Parade on January 26.

"It is going to be a comprehensive view of the work that NDRF does. It will depict the experience that the NDRF has earned over the years.

"The tableau will also showcase the capacity that the force has acquired in launching an effective rescue and relief operation, be it floods, cyclone, the CBRN challenge and the rescue in collapsed structures," the DG said.

CBRN stands for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats.

Personnel of the force in their distinct blue uniforms and orange jackets will also be present on the moving float.

The NDRF has 12 operational battalions at present.

These are located in Assam, West Bengal, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, NCR (Ghaziabad), Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh apart from multiple regional response centres in various cities.

According to the latest data, NDRF, which functions under the command of the Union home ministry, has rescued over 1.15 lakh people and evacuated over 5.8 lakh stranded persons during various operations within the country and abroad.