The National Disaster Management Division in India is the nodal division in the Ministry of Home Affairs for disaster management. Who is the Ex-officio Chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority ?
- (a)The Prime Minister
- (b)The Home Minister
- (c)The Defence Minister
- (d)The Health and Family Welfare Minister
Correct — A, the Prime Minister. Under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is the apex body for disaster management in India and the Prime Minister is its ex-officio Chairperson. The Act builds a three-tier structure whose heads follow the head of government at each level: the PM chairs NDMA at the Centre, the Chief Minister chairs the State Disaster Management Authority, and the District Magistrate/Collector chairs the District Disaster Management Authority.
- (b)The Home Minister — The trap. The Ministry of Home Affairs is the nodal ministry (and houses the National Disaster Management Division), but the NDMA is chaired ex-officio by the Prime Minister, not the Home Minister.
- (c)The Defence Minister — The Defence Minister has no ex-officio role at the head of NDMA; the armed forces/NDRF assist in response, but the authority is chaired by the PM.
- (d)The Health and Family Welfare Minister — Health is one sector among many that NDMA coordinates; the Health Minister does not chair the authority.
The Disaster Management Act, 2005 created a statutory, three-tier institutional framework for disaster management. At the top is the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), chaired ex-officio by the Prime Minister, with up to nine members (one designated Vice-Chairperson). It lays down policies, plans and guidelines; the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is the specialised force for on-ground response. The Ministry of Home Affairs is the nodal ministry.
The question front-loads 'Ministry of Home Affairs' to tempt you toward the Home Minister (b). Ignore the nodal-ministry detail: the chair of the authority tracks the executive head at each level — PM at the Centre. Lock the chain NDMA→PM, SDMA→CM, DDMA→DM.
- NDMA is the apex disaster-management body under the Disaster Management Act, 2005
- Prime Minister is the ex-officio Chairperson of NDMA (up to 9 members, incl. a Vice-Chairperson)
- Three tiers: NDMA (PM) → SDMA (Chief Minister) → DDMA (District Magistrate/Collector)
- Ministry of Home Affairs = nodal ministry; NDRF = specialised response force
- NDMA (National) — Chairperson: Prime Minister
- SDMA (State) — Chairperson: Chief Minister
- DDMA (District) — Chairperson: District Magistrate/Collector
Answer (a): the Prime Minister is the ex-officio Chairperson of the NDMA.
- Choosing the Home Minister because MHA is the nodal ministry
- Confusing NDMA (policy/apex body, PM-chaired) with NDRF (response force)
Asked as 'who chairs NDMA/SDMA/DDMA', which Act set up NDMA, or NDMA-vs-NDRF role matching — the PM-CM-DM chairing chain is the reusable fact.
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) is chaired ex-officio by the:
- (a)Governor
- (b)Chief Minister
- (c)Chief Secretary
- (d)Home Minister of the State
Answer(b) the Chief Minister of the State.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) was constituted under which law?
- (a)The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
- (b)The Disaster Management Act, 2005
- (c)The National Security Act, 1980
- (d)The Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897
Answer(b) the Disaster Management Act, 2005.