India has emerged as first responder in humanitarian assistance at global level: CDS Anil Chauhan

India has emerged as the first responder in Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) at the global level, said Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan on Tuesday.

“In keeping with our cultural belief of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam – the whole world is one family, India has been playing an important role in providing HADR in the region and beyond,” the CDS said.

Notably, he was speaking at the workshop on humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, risk mitigation and disaster resilience organisation under aegis of Integrated Defence Staff (IDS), Ministry of Defence in New Delhi.

CDS further cited instances such as Operation Maitri (rescue operation during an earthquake in Nepal), assistance to Sri Lanka in 2016 during Cyclone Roanu, earthquake in Indonesia in 2018, flooding in Madagascar in January 2020, supply of vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic and so on.

“By strengthening multilateral partnerships through engagement via regional mechanisms, improved interoperability and faster response, we have played our role as the first responder in the region,” CDS added.

CDS further noted that the armed forced along with a dedicated organisational structure are often the first responders in the event of any disaster.