New Delhi: The Annual Joint HADR Exercise 'Samanvay 2022' was conducted by the IAF at Air Force Station, Agra from 28 November 2022 to 30 November 2022.

Various stakeholders from the country and representatives from ASEAN member countries participated in the exercise. 

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh was the chief guest on the second day of the Multi Agency Exercise dedicated to Capability Demonstration.

In his address, the Minister emphasized the need for collaborative HADR management at national and regional levels to improve interoperability and provide faster response to crisis situations.

He advocated the necessity of speed, scale and solidarity in the disaster response mechanism to save valuable lives and property.

While thanking the participants of ASEAN countries, he brought out that the focus of India has now shifted from a 'relief- centric' to a 'multi-pronged' approach to crises encompassing prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, relief and rehabilitation.

He commended the role played by all stakeholders in the domain of HADR and underlined the effectiveness of the Armed Forces as 'First Responders' in crisis situations. 

Samanvay 2022 tested the efficacy of all available HADR resources. It emerged as a significant step towards achieving synergy between various stakeholders and facilitated exchange of knowledge, experience and best practices with the participants including those representing the ASEAN member countries.