The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and SAIL, Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) conducted a joint mock drill on 4th April, 2025 at Propane Plant-3 of the Oxygen Plant, simulating a propane gas fire incident. The exercise aimed to assess the effectiveness of RSP’s onsite disaster management system and personnel as part of statutory safety requirements.
The Mock Drill was conducted in the presence of Mr. Biswaranjan Palai, ED (Works), Ms. Anita Naik, Deputy Commissioner, Rourkela Municipal Corporation, Mr. Bibhu Prasad, Deputy Director (Factories & Boilers), Government of Odisha, Mr. S K Rout, Assistant Director, (Factories & Boilers), Government of Odisha, Mr. S S Raychowdhury, CGM In-charge (Maintenance), Mr. P S Kannan, CGM (EMD), Mr. Atish Chandra Sarkar, CGM (Services), Mr. Hiralal Mohapatra, CGM (Utilities & Environment), Mr. Abkash Behera, GM (SED), Mr. M I Sonkusare, DGM (Fire Services), Mr. B Kumar, Deputy Commandant, CISF, and many other senior officers of RSP, CISF, NDRF and ODRAF.
During the exercise, Mr. Palai emphasized the importance of expanding such drills to other areas of the plant and leveraging the expertise of the NDRF team.
Ms. Naik in her address stressed on meticulous coordination between different agencies for effective management of emergency conditions.
Mr. Bibhu Prasad highlighted the significance of joint mock drills in reinforcing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) during emergency situations.
The other dignitaries also spoke on the occasion and lauded the coordinated multi-agency team efforts and role of NDRF in relief operation carried out worldwide.
All the three teams namely the Combat team, Rescue team and Auxiliary team comprising members from NDRF, Oxygen Plant, Fire Services and CISF took part in the mock drill.
Notably such mock safety drills are being organised in strategic units of RSP from time to time to maintain a high level of preparedness for tackling any eventuality.
The Mock Drill was coordinated by Mr. Ullas Bhujabal, GM (Oxygen Plant) and Mr. Biswajit Mohanty, Deputy Manager (SED) under the guidance of Mr. S S Saini, GM In-charge (Oxygen Plant).
