The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is the apex statutory body for disaster management in India. It was formally constituted on September 27, 2006, under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 (DM Act). The Act itself was enacted on December 23, 2005, following a shift in national policy from a largely reactive, relief-centric approach to a proactive, holistic one, spurred by events like the 2001 Gujarat earthquake.
The NDMA is chaired by the Prime Minister of India. Its core mechanism is to lay down the policies, plans, and guidelines for disaster management. Under the original DM Act, the National Executive Committee (NEC), constituted under Section 8, was responsible for preparing the National Plan. The NDMA's role was to approve this National Plan and the plans of Central Government Ministries. It also lays down guidelines for the State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs), which are mandated under Section 14 of the Act.
The NDMA is the national head of a three-tiered institutional structure that includes the SDMAs at the state level and the District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs) at the district level. It also oversees the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), a specialized force established under Sections 44-45 of the Act. A significant recent change is the Disaster Management (Amendment) Act, 2025, which mandates the creation of a National Disaster Database and strengthens the NDMA's role by adding functions like taking periodic stock of disaster risks. The Amendment also shifts the responsibility for preparing the National Disaster Management Plan to the NDMA itself, a change from the original mechanism where the NEC prepared it.