THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Community Rescue Volunteer Service of the Fire and Rescue Services Department helped add fire in the hearts of public at the time of the recent floods who were in the line of action, rescuing the victims. However, the department could have done even better had its proposal for setting up a civil defence force implemented in its true spirit.The proposal to set up a core of volunteers, starting with 12,500 and to be raised to 30,000, was put forward by former Director General Tomin J Thachankary.
However, the department had to water down the proposal after the government sat on the request to create about 10 posts to mould a parallel civilian force equipped to mitigate disasters and act swiftly in the time of calamities. “There was a proposal to rear a strong civilian force across the state that could be used in time of calamities. The plan was to train 12,500 volunteers in the beginning and then raise their number gradually.
“This is a huge task and requires infrastructure and a proper system in place to monitor their training and related things. For that the department had requested the government to create posts, including that of instructors and administrators. “Since the government hasn’t created posts, the original plan had to be watered down,” said a senior officer in the department who wished to remain anonymous.
At present, there are around 3,700 members in the civilian rescue team under the Fire and Rescue Services who have been provided basic training in rescue operations and first-aid administration.“On an average we have about 30 civilians attached with each fire station. There are 123 fire stations in Kerala and the civilians have been trained in our facilities,” said Fire and Rescue sources. Director General of Fire and Rescue Services A Hemachandran said: “Having civilian volunteers from local communities is a big boost during rescue operations as they have better knowledge of the topography of the place.”