Team Goemkarponn
Panaji: Chief Minister Dr Pramod P. Sawant has congratulated two Master Trainers from Goa for their outstanding performance under the Aapda Mitra/Aapda Sakhi programme and their participation in the Republic Day Celebrations 2026 at Kartavya Path, New Delhi.
Ms Pooja Arjun Paryekar and Mr Sahil Sainath Sawant were selected as best-performing Aapda Mitra/Aapda Sakhi volunteers after successfully completing a 12-day Disaster Response Training Programme under the Training of Trainers (ToT) initiative. The programme was conducted by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) as part of the upscaling of the Aapda Mitra Scheme.
The two volunteers represented Goa at the national-level Republic Day events and attended official engagements in New Delhi from January 23 to January 27, 2026. Their visit included witnessing the Republic Day Parade at Kartavya Path, participating in a special session on Psychology in Disaster Response at the 8th Battalion of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) in Ghaziabad, and visiting Rashtrapati Bhavan, where they interacted with the President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu.
On February 3, 2026, the Master Trainers, along with Director of Fire and Emergency Services Shri Nitin V. Raiker, met the Chief Minister and briefed him about their experience. Dr Sawant appreciated the efforts of the Aapda Mitra and Aapda Sakhi volunteers and lauded the Directorate of Fire and Emergency Services for nurturing and empowering community-level disaster responders.
The participation highlights the Government of Goa’s commitment to strengthening community-based disaster preparedness and resilience under the Aapda Mitra/Aapda Sakhi Scheme.
