The Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Response and Fire Services (SDRFS) is trying to overcome various problems to provide better services to the public. SDRFS Director-General met with regional and district officers from the fire department and announced certain changes.
One of the major decisions is the amendments made to the Fire Service Act. The changes needed for the Act will be studied by a committee that would consult stakeholders like architects, builders, industrialists, doctors and others in Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada and Tirupati.
We wrote previously how the district was facing a severe shortage in terms of personnel. So the fire department now plans to rope in NCC cadets, NGO activists, and security personnel from private sectors and various other sectors. There will also be youth interested in volunteering with the fire department.
The staff from rural areas will soon be shifted to the urban ones and given training in Pune to tackle fire accidents, floods, and other disasters. In ten days, there will be an online system to issue fire NOCs. Details of fire-fighting equipment, fees and other details will be uploaded onto their website.
Two new fire stations have been sanctioned at Kuppam and Peddapuram, construction work for the same will begin as soon as budget allocation is done. Land for the new fire stations have already been allotted.
Clearance of all pending files, filling up of vacancies, upgrading office administration through e-office, imparting the personnel modern training in swimming, floor and rescue operations were the issues discussed at the meeting.
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