SRINAGAR: Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah on Thursday gave directions for immediate distribution of relief to the flood affected families under State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF).
“Whatever relief is available to the affected families under SDRF should be immediately distributed to them”, the Chief Minister told the high level bureaucrats at a meeting he chaired this morning to review process of relief and rehabilitation for flood-hit families.
The Chief Minister said that the compensation for cattle loss, crops damage, collapsed houses (fully or partially), warm bedding and clothing etc should be accounted for in delivery of temporary relief to the flood survivors. He said winter is setting in soon and concerned Deputy Commissioners should spare no efforts and lose no time in distributing the relief promptly.
The Chief Minister said that comprehensive package for the rehabilitation of flood-hit families has been formulated by the State Government and is being sent to the Government of India for release of funds after vetting by the State Cabinet. He said till the time the Special Relief Package is approved by the Central Government, the Deputy Commissioners should promptly distribute all sort of temporary relief available under SDRF to the flood affected families.
The Chief Minister who has fixed one week’s time for completing the task of distributing compensation to the house owners whose houses are fully damaged in the floods received brief from Divisional Commissioner on the follow-up action on this issue. He received the brief about providing temporary accommodation to the flood-hit families residing on roadsides.
The Chief Minister in Wednesday’s meeting had asked the Divisional Commissioner to ascertain their number and put in place a programme for providing temporary shelter to them and other relief under SDRF norms. He was informed that around 168 families in Srinagar have been identified who are residing in tents on roadsides and a plan is being formulated to provide them temporary housing shelter.
The Chief Minister stressed the need for early completion of assessment of crop and cattle losses in the devastating flood. “Give strict directions to the concerned Deputy Commissioners to complete the list of affected families on this count and distribute the compensation to them immediately under SDRF norms”, he directed the Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir.
The Chief Minister also gave directions for shifting heavy dewatering pumps to Sonawari and other places which are still water-logged. “Intensify the dewatering operation in these areas”, he told the Commissioner Secretary PHE and Flood Control. He also directed him to accelerate the pace of restoration of PHE system to its full capacity besides normalizing the irrigation canals. “Prioritise the works and complete them speedily”, he told him adding that release of funds in this regard will be no problem.
The Chief Minister also directed for smooth flow of ration to the ration depots in the Valley and Srinagar City to provide the ration to the people for the current month. He said all efforts should be made to make the ration available in the current month to the consumers particularly in flood-hit areas where free ration is being provided to the affected families.
Omar Abdullah ascertained the progress of removal of garbage and debris from the flood affected areas in Srinagar and received information about the disinfection process underway in the areas where from water has dried up.
The meeting was attended by various Ministers, the Chief Secretary, Principal Secretaries, Administrative Secretaries, Heads of the Departments and senior officers. It may be mentioned here that the Chief Minister is monitoring the process of relief and rehabilitation in the monitoring meetings on daily basis since the time floods hit the State.
