Parwinder SandhuNew Delhi, Feb. 15 -- Even as they guard India's borders and sovereignty, the Indian Armed Forces have steadily evolved into one of the country's most reliable first responders, delivering Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) both at home and across the globe.
Backed by a robust institutional framework and guided by the ethos of "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam" and SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), India today stands recognised as a dependable crisis responder in the Indian Ocean Region and beyond.
The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami marked a watershed in India's HADR architecture. Faced with unprecedented devastation, the Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard mounted a massive tri-service response across l...