The Assam Rifles, a central paramilitary force that guards India’s border with Myanmar, will soon have presence in Jammu and Kashmir as the government has approved conversion and placement of one of its battalion into the NDRF.
A recent government order issued by the Union Home Ministrysaid the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) will have four new battalionsthat will be based in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and thenational capital region.
The order, accessed by PTI, said the new battalions of theNDRF will be drawn from the Assam Rifles (location in J-K), the Indo-TibetanBorder Police (Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand) and the Border Security Force(Delhi-NCR region).
The Assam Rifles draws its strength of officers from theArmy and functions under the command of the Union Home Ministry.
Established in 1835 as a militia called the ‘Cachar Levy’,the paramilitary force today has a strength of about 47,000 personnel.
“The process of acquiring land and operationalising thenew NDRF battalions is now on,” a senior official said.
The Narendra Modi government had approved raising of thefour new NDRF battalions in August last year in order to strengthen India’sdisaster response set up at an estimated cost of Rs 637 crore.
The aim for creation and placement of these new units is toreduce the response time, keeping in view the vast geographical area of thecountry, the government had said.An NDRF battalion comprises a little over 1,000personnel. Its battalions are raised from various Central Armed Police Forces(CAPFs) and the parent force is responsible for feeding the ranks andpersonnel, who are sent on a time-bound deputation to the NDRF.