New Delhi:
India is sending a contingent of 80 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel for relief and rescue works in earthquake-hit Myanmar, officials here said Saturday.
The personnel of the federal disaster contingency force are being deployed under ‘Operation Brahma’ with quake rescue equipment like strong concrete cutters, drill machines, hammers etc. to provide succour to the neighbouring country.
“A team of 80 NDRF personnel are being airlifted to Myanmar onboard two IAF sorties from Hindon in Ghaziabad. The teams are expected to reach by Saturday evening,” an official told PTI.
Commandant P K Tiwary of the 8th NDRF battalion based in Ghaziabad near Delhi will lead the USAR (Urban Search And Rescue) team.
The team is also taking along rescue dogs for the collapsed structure search and rescue operation being undertaken as per International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) norms, the official said.
Myanmar and neighbouring Thailand were rocked by high-intensity earthquake on Friday, destroying buildings, bridges and other structures. At least 1,002 people were reportedly killed in Myanmar.
India has deployed NDRF abroad on two previous occasions — during the 2015 Nepal earthquake and the 2023 Turkiye quake.
About 15 tonnes of relief material was sent by India on Saturday to the Myanmarese city of Yangon on a C130J military transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday expressed concern over the devastating earthquake and said India stands ready to offer all possible assistance to the two countries.
India shares a 1,643-km-long border with Myanmar on the eastern side.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)