DISASTER MANAGEMENT (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2025

• First major overhaul of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, receiving Presidential assent on 29 March 2025.
• Recasts institutional architecture: shifts plan-preparation from committees to NDMA/SDMA, creates Urban Disaster Management Authorities (UDMAs) under new Section 41A, statutorily recognises NCMC and HLC, and empowers states to raise a State Disaster Response Force (SDRF).
• Why care: high-yield for GS-III (Disaster Management) and Prelims polity/governance; ties directly to urban floods (Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi) and heatwave governance.