The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is the apex statutory body for disaster management in India, formally constituted on September 27, 2006, under Section 3(1) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005. The Act, which received Presidential assent on December 23, 2005, was enacted to shift India's approach from a reactive, relief-centric model to a proactive, holistic system encompassing prevention, preparedness, and mitigation. Before this legislation, disaster response was largely ad hoc, with weak coordination between agencies.
The NDMA is chaired by the Prime Minister and can have up to nine other members. Its primary function, as mandated by the Act, is to lay down the policies, plans, and guidelines for disaster management to ensure a timely and effective response. The NDMA works within a three-tier institutional structure, connecting to the State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs), chaired by the respective Chief Ministers, and the District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs). The Act also provides for the creation of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) under Section 44 for specialist response to threatening disaster situations.
The Disaster Management Act, 2005, was recently amended by the Disaster Management (Amendment) Act, 2025, which came into force on April 9, 2025. This amendment empowered the NDMA and SDMAs to prepare the disaster management plans directly, replacing the earlier role of the National Executive Committee and State Executive Committees. The amendment also gave statutory recognition to previously informal bodies like the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) and added new functions for the NDMA, such as creating and maintaining a national disaster database and periodically assessing emerging risks from extreme climate events. The core mandate of the NDMA—to lay down policies and guidelines—remained the same, but its role in planning and data management was significantly enhanced.