State Disaster Response Force: Role and Preparedness in Disaster Management

India ranks among the world’s most disaster-prone countries, regularly facing floods, cyclones, earthquakes, droughts, and landslides. When a disaster hits, the speed and quality of the response at the ground level can determine how many lives are saved and how quickly communities recover. That’s where the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) becomes critical. Operating at the state level, the SDRF is the first organized line of defense in any disaster situation – and understanding how it is set up, funded, and trained reveals a great deal about how India has built its disaster management architecture from the ground up.

The legal foundation: where SDRF comes from 🔗

The SDRF was not born out of an ad hoc decision. It is rooted in the Disaster Management Act, 2005, which created a comprehensive and legally binding framework for disaster management across India. The Act established institutions at three levels – national, state, and district – each with defined roles and responsibilities. At the national level, it created the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), headed by the Prime Minister. At the state level, it mandated the creation of State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs), chaired by the Chief Minister of each state.

While the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) was directly established under Section 44 of the Act for specialist, rapid-deployment operations, the SDRF was conceived as its state-level counterpart – closer to the community, faster to reach local disaster sites, and embedded within existing state security and civil defense infrastructure. The Disaster Management (Amendment) Bill, 2024 further strengthened this by formally empowering state governments to constitute their own SDRF through statute, allowing each state to define the force’s functions and terms of service for its members.

How the SDRF is structured and assembled 🔗

The SDRF does not operate as a separate, standalone force with entirely new recruits. Instead, it is drawn from existing state resources – police battalions, fire services, Home Guards, and Civil Defence units – whose personnel are specially selected and trained for disaster response. The NDMA recommends that states train at least one battalion-equivalent of their state armed police as an SDRF, modeled along the lines of the NDRF.

A practical example of this model is seen in Gujarat, where the Gujarat State Disaster Management Authority (GSDMA) carved out 11 SRPF companies, each with 100 personnel, specifically earmarked for disaster management and designated as SDRF teams. These were trained jointly by NDRF teams based in the state. Similarly, in Nagaland, 240 personnel from Civil Defence and Home Guards were screened, selected, and trained as a full-time dedicated SDRF – stationed at eight key locations across the state for rapid deployment. During non-disaster periods, these personnel conduct awareness programs in villages, schools, and colleges, making them an active part of community preparedness.

The organizational structure governing the SDRF 🔗

The SDRF does not function in isolation. It operates within a clearly defined governance structure anchored by the State Executive Committee (SEC) – a body established under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. The SEC is headed by the Chief Secretary of the state and is responsible for coordinating and implementing disaster management at the state level. It works in close support of the SDMA.

The SEC plays several key roles in the functioning of the SDRF. It prepares the State Disaster Management Plan, coordinates the execution of disaster response activities, and ensures that different state departments – health, public works, revenue, and others – are aligned in their preparedness and response actions. Importantly, the SEC also holds the authority to approve state-specific disaster classifications. Under SDRF guidelines, a state government can use up to 10% of its SDRF allocation for relief in local disasters not included in the Ministry of Home Affairs’ official notified list – but only after that disaster category has been listed and guidelines approved by the State Executive Committee. This gives states real flexibility to respond to context-specific calamities without waiting for central notification.

District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) 🔗

Below the SEC, the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) acts as the implementing body at the grassroots level. It plans, coordinates, and executes disaster management activities at the district level. The SDRF works in coordination with the DDMA during actual disaster events, ensuring that rescue and relief operations are geographically targeted and logistically supported by district-level resources and local knowledge.

The State Disaster Response Fund: the financial engine 🔗

An effective disaster response force is only as capable as the resources available to it. This is where the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) plays a defining role. Constituted under Section 48(1)(a) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the SDRF is the primary fund available to state governments for responding to officially notified disasters. It covers a broad range of calamities including cyclone, drought, earthquake, fire, flood, tsunami, hailstorm, landslide, avalanche, cloudburst, pest attack, frost, and cold waves.

The fund is jointly financed by the central and state governments. For general category states and Union Territories, the central government contributes 75% while the state contributes 25%. For special category states – which include the North-Eastern states, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu & Kashmir – the central share is 90% and the state’s share is just 10%. The annual central contribution is released in two equal installments as per the recommendation of the Finance Commission. Allocation of SDRF funds to individual states is based on multiple factors: past expenditure, geographic area, population size, and a disaster risk index – ensuring that states with higher vulnerability and greater need receive proportionately larger support.

What the SDRF can be used for 🔗

The SDRF is strictly designated for immediate relief to disaster victims. This includes food, shelter, medical assistance, and emergency support. However, the 15th Finance Commission expanded the financial architecture significantly. Within the broader State Disaster Risk Management Fund (SDRMF), the SDRF now sits alongside a State Disaster Mitigation Fund (SDMF). The SDRMF received a total recommended allocation of ₹1,60,153 crore for 2021-26, with 80% (₹1,28,122 crore) earmarked for disaster response and 20% (₹32,031 crore) for mitigation activities. These two funding windows are not interchangeable, ensuring that response money is not diverted to long-term projects and vice versa.

Furthermore, within the SDRF itself, the 15th Finance Commission guidelines introduced a structured internal sub-allocation: 40% for response and relief, 30% for recovery and reconstruction, and 10% for preparedness and capacity building. This last sub-allocation is particularly significant – it means that even the core response fund now has a dedicated portion specifically for training personnel, procuring equipment, and building readiness before any disaster strikes.

Preparedness and capacity building: the SDRF’s proactive role 🔗

One of the most important shifts in India’s disaster management thinking – reflected in the SDRF framework – is the move away from a purely reactive approach toward proactive preparedness. The SDRF is not just deployed after a disaster occurs; it is expected to be ready before one does.

Training is central to this. SDRF personnel undergo specialized training in collapsed structure search and rescue (CSSR), medical first response (MFR), flood rescue, rope rescue, and Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) emergency response. In Haryana, for example, the SDRF has trained 241 police personnel in CSSR/MFR, 70 in CBRNE response, and 74 in flood rescue, all deployed strategically across districts. Training is structured around standardized course modules developed in coordination with the NDMA and NDRF, ensuring that when SDRF and NDRF units work together during large-scale disasters, their coordination is seamless.

Beyond personnel training, the preparedness mandate includes community-level engagement. SDRF units conduct mock drills, simulation exercises, and public awareness campaigns in villages, schools, and colleges. This community interface is not just beneficial – it multiplies the force’s reach enormously, effectively extending disaster preparedness deep into local populations who are often the actual first responders before any organized force arrives.

When SDRF funds are not enough: the NDRF backstop 🔗

India’s disaster management framework is designed with a clear escalation path. When a disaster is severe enough to overwhelm state-level resources and SDRF funds are insufficient, the state can apply for supplemental assistance from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). As per the National Policy on Disaster Management, the primary responsibility for disaster management rests with state governments, but the central government supplements state efforts when needed. In such cases, an Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT) is dispatched to assess the damage on-site, and based on its report, central NDRF funds are released. During 2024-25 alone, the central government released over ₹19,074 crore to 28 states under SDRF and an additional ₹5,160 crore to 19 states under NDRF.

Agriculture and rural communities: why SDRF matters for agripreneurs 🔗

For anyone engaged in agriculture-based enterprise, understanding the SDRF is not merely an academic exercise. Farmers and agripreneurs are among the most exposed groups in any natural disaster. Crop damage from floods, pest attacks, hailstorms, frost, and drought – all of which are covered under SDRF-notified disasters – can wipe out an entire season’s investment overnight. The SDRF provides the immediate financial relief mechanism through which state governments compensate affected farmers and support recovery. Knowing that these mechanisms exist, how they are activated, and what the eligibility criteria are is essential risk knowledge for any agricultural entrepreneur. It also underscores why community-level preparedness – the kind the SDRF actively promotes – directly reduces the vulnerability of rural livelihoods.

What do you think? With disasters becoming more frequent and intense due to climate change, do you think the current SDRF funding structure – shared between centre and state – is adequate for states with the highest disaster risk? And how can agripreneurs at the community level actively participate in SDRF-linked preparedness programs to better protect their livelihoods?

References

1. https://ndmindia.mha.gov.in/ndmi/laws-plans-and-policies
2. https://ndma.gov.in/about-us/introduction
3. https://prsindia.org/billtrack/the-disaster-management-amendment-bill-2024
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Disaster_Response_Force
5. http://gsdma.org/Content/creation-of-state-disaster-response-force-sdrf-4191
6. https://nsdma.nagaland.gov.in/sdrf
7. https://vajiramandravi.com/upsc-exam/disaster-management-in-india/
8. https://msdma.gov.in/sdrf.html
9. https://ndmindia.mha.gov.in/ndmi/responsefund
10. https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1938934
11. https://srcodisha.nic.in/dmrule/Guidelines%20SDRF%20&%20NDRF_compressed.pdf
12. https://1stbnirb.haryanapolice.gov.in/AboutSDRF
13. https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2080185&reg=3&lang=2