Given its exposure to natural and manmade hazards, India has gained significant experience and built a toolkit for responding to disasters at home and in the wider Indo-Pacific region. Indeed, India has delivered assistance to neighbors and partners and has begun hosting and leading disaster response training and exercise. Not only will India deploy its Armed Forces in response to a natural disaster or crisis, but it has developed a specialized national disaster response force that...
More DescriptionGiven its exposure to natural and manmade hazards, India has gained significant experience and built a toolkit for responding to disasters at home and in the wider Indo-Pacific region. Indeed, India has delivered assistance to neighbors and partners and has begun hosting and leading disaster response training and exercise. Not only will India deploy its Armed Forces in response to a natural disaster or crisis, but it has developed a specialized national disaster response force that plays a key role in saving lives and reducing suffering. As the world grapples with the complex interactions among great power competition, economic dislocation, and climate change, India sits at a key geographic, economic, and security location where it is both subject to intense pressure and capable of responding to challenges by utilizing its mammoth human, natural, and economic capacity. As a force for adaptation and cooperation, India has the potential to promote stability and security in the region and to help build the region's resilience to natural calamity. This handbook is intended to serve as an initial source of information for those individuals preparing for disaster risk reduction activities or immediate deployment for a crisis alongside partner responders from India. It highlights the important role India plays in preparing for, mitigating, responding to, and recovering from natural or man-made disasters in the Indo-Pacific region. It provides decision makers, planners, and practitioners greater insight into India's capabilities, thereby enhancing regional civil-military response.