Fifty personnel from National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF), an elite Government of India force deployed to conduct rescue and relief operations during natural disasters, are undergoing an intensive training programme in deep diving, handling of varied diving equipment, CPR, among other aspects of marine disaster management in Goa.
The 45-day training programme is being conducted by the Special Rescue Training Academy (SRTA), Drishti Marine’s internationally accredited training agency, and has been scheduled at various locations including Hawaii beach near Panaji, in the state’s rivers, freshwater bodies and abandoned mining pits.
“The first pilot batch (sourced from 16 NDRF battalions), comprising 50 personnel, is currently being trained in Goa. The training includes learning how to handle different diving equipment utilised by lifesavers, deep-sea diving, CPR training and demo sessions,” according Navin Awasthi, operations head at Drishti Marine. After the training of the first batch is complete in Goa, subsequent NDRF batches are expected to be dispatched to the state to undergo similar training exercises.
The 45-day training, which began last week, includes a mix of classroom training and intensive field drills.
The NDRF personnel will head for the Hawaii beach in the first phase as part of their field training exercise.
The 50 NDRF personnel are being trained by a team of 10 SRTA trainers, who are expert, certified divers, some of whom were formerly with the Indian Navy.
