Damaged railway tracks near Lalitpur in Bihar on Wednesday. (PTI)

Patna, Sept. 24: Bihar, hit by the worst-ever floods in recent memory, is all set to get the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) permanently stationed in the state.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar confirmed that the state government had earmarked 100 acres at Bihta on the outskirts of Patna, to house the elite force which had earned praise for its rescue work in north Bihar districts following the breach in the Kosi last month.

In fact, the proposal to set up a permanent NDRF camp in the state was pending since in January 2007 when the National Disaster Management Authority sought land from the government for stationing the force.

But the government officials did not show any hurry on the proposal at that stage despite the fact that floods have been common here and north Bihar suffered massive deluge last year too. However, the catastrophe unleashed by the Kosi displacing at least three million people and taking 163 lives has probably led the officials here to realise the importance of the NDRF.

It had taken almost six to 10 days for the NDRF to land in the flood zone and rescue people being swept away by the Kosi current. “Had the NDRF arrived in time, many more people would have been saved,” said a senior disaster management official, adding: “The NDRF rescuers saved at least 90,000 people trapped in the remote areas swamped by the swirling waters in Saharsa, Madhepura, Supaul, Araria and Katihar districts.”