Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services will soon start inducting women as firefighters in its force. A proposal has been sent to the government and a decision will be taken soon, said Braj Kishore Ravi, Director-General of Police and Director of the department.
“We have 22 women in the officer category but we do not have women as fire personnel. We are in the process of inducting fire women and have already sent a proposal which is under the active consideration of the government,” Mr. Ravi told The Hindu.
A 1989 batch officer, Mr. Ravi, took charge recently, explained various activities in the pipeline. “My priority is to modernise the TNFRS on a par with international standards. We will give the best training to personnel and equip them to handle any challenge during their search and rescue operations,” he said.
A new academy for fire service personnel is coming up near Tambaram to train fire service personnel involved in rescue operations and disaster management. The academy will be set up on the existing campus of the training centre. The academy will train personnel from other departments, including the police, in protection, relief and rescue of people and animals during calamity. Soon, construction work will start, he said.
There was a proposal to have permanent personnel in the State Disaster Response Force. The police, who undergo training in the rescue and relief operation, move to other divisions and their training went in vain.
Dog squad
With the idea of establishing a dog squad, the TNFRS bought four pups and they will be trained at National Centre for Dog Training in Madhya Pradesh. After the training, they would be deployed to detect people and animals trapped under the debris after the building collapse or disaster, he said.
“There are 5,000 people at present under the Safety Volunteers Scheme. We will increase their numbers to 1 lakh since their assistance may be required in disaster-prone districts, including those in coastal region. There is good scope for community participation in helping the personnel during fire fighting and rescue operations in times of disasters,” said Mr. Ravi.
