BharatNotes What is INSARAG?
The International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) is a United Nations-affiliated network of disaster-prone and disaster-responding countries and humanitarian organisations, established in 1991. It was set up in response to major earthquakes — including the 1985 Mexico City and 1988 Spitak (Armenia) disasters — that revealed serious gaps in coordinating the many international Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams arriving after a collapse event. INSARAG develops common guidelines, methodology and quality standards so that international USAR assistance is fast, effective and interoperable. Its Secretariat sits within the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Geneva, and the network includes over 90 member states and organisations.
Mandate and Structure
INSARAG's role is anchored in UN General Assembly Resolution 57/150, adopted on 16 December 2002, titled "Strengthening the effectiveness and coordination of international urban search and rescue assistance." Its work is further guided by the Hyogo Declaration (first Global Meeting, Kobe, Japan, 2010) and the Abu Dhabi Declaration (second Global Meeting, UAE, 2015).
The network is organised into a Steering Group, a Secretariat (in OCHA), and three Regional Groups:
| Regional Group | Coverage |
|---|---|
| Africa / Europe / Middle East | African, European and Middle Eastern states |
| Americas | North, Central and South America |
| Asia / Pacific | Asian and Pacific states (includes India) |
Each Regional Group meets annually, elects a Chair and Vice-Chair, and feeds into the Steering Group.
Classification of USAR Teams
A core INSARAG product is the classification of international USAR teams by capability, ensuring only qualified resources deploy abroad. Teams are graded as Light, Medium or Heavy, and must include five components — Management, Search, Rescue, Medical and Logistics.
| Level | Indicative Personnel | Capability |
|---|---|---|
| Light | ~17 | Surface rescue; wood / unreinforced masonry |
| Medium | ~40 | Technical rescue in heavy wood / reinforced masonry |
| Heavy | ~59 | Two work-sites simultaneously in reinforced concrete / structural steel collapse |
Quality is verified through two voluntary, independent peer-review processes — the INSARAG External Classification (IEC) and the INSARAG External Reclassification (IER). Classified teams are listed in the Directory of International USAR Teams.
India and INSARAG
India participates through the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) under the Asia/Pacific Regional Group. An NDRF heavy USAR team (Ghaziabad battalion) has been mentored by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) towards IEC certification, with the mentoring announced in early 2024. This collaboration reflects India's push to bring a domestic team to globally certified standard.
UPSC Angle
INSARAG is a high-value supporting fact for GS3 disaster management. Remember: UN/OCHA-anchored (not a treaty body), born 1991, backed by UNGA Resolution 57/150, and the Light/Medium/Heavy IEC classification. It connects neatly to NDRF, NDMA and India's international humanitarian cooperation.
