Assessment done after revised survey: Drabu
SRINAGAR: In a major disappointment to the flood hit people of the Valley, the government has sharply reduced the number of houses that were damaged by the floods.
The number of houses has been drastically reduced to 67,661 from 3, 44,607 that were estimated by the previous government.
The reduction of damaged houses was Friday confirmed by the government itself in an official statement.
Quoting Finance Minister Haseeb Drabu, the statement said the reduction was done following a revised survey by the concerned Deputy Commissioners and thus the total number of the flood-damaged houses has come down from 344607 to 67661.
Giving the break-up, Drabu said the number of fully damaged Pucca houses has come down to 10,451 against 45,862 as was projected in the loss-memo submitted to the Centre by the NC-Congress Government.
He said the number of fully damaged Kutcha houses has come down to 11,034 from 21,635 and number of partially damaged houses has gone down from 18,7756 to 46,000.
In another disappointment to people, the government has kept only Rs 1200 crore for relief and rehabilitation of the flood victims.
Enumerating the details, Drabu said that Rs 3 lakh each would be given as compensation for fully damaged Pucca house, Rs 1.50 lakh for fully damaged Kutcha house, Rs 1 lakh for severely damaged Pucca house and Rs 50,000 for severely damaged Kutcha house.
This will be in addition to the relief already paid to the flood-affected households and traders, Drabu said.
Surprisingly, the government has left out the partially damaged houses from the relief. (KNS)
Peanuts for flood victims: Radha Kumar
Accusing both the State and central government of providing peanuts to flood hit victims of Kashmir Valley, former interlocutor and Indian Civil Society member Radha Kumar Friday said the government decision to spend less on flood victims will give rise to deep alienation once again in the region.
She said it was unfortunate that Government of India announced a package for the state after a gap of over one year and when it came to aid and assist the flood hit people, only Rs 2000 crore out of mega 80 thousand crore were set apart for them.
Pertinently, Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed in Jammu announced that Rs 1200 crore will be spent on reconstruction of houses damaged in the September 2014 floods, while Rs 800 crore will be utilized for reviving the flood impacted trade.
Kumar told Srinagar based news agency CNS that whatever meager relief so far government provided to the flood hit people did not reach to the deserved ones. People on daily basis alleged that relief money went into the coffers of those who were least affected by floods. If State Government really wants to help flood victims then it should come up with a proper strategy and plan so that real victims get their due, she said.
Rs 2000 crore package for the flood hit people is not only meager but it has also arrived too late. State Government must plead their case once again before the Central Government and persuade it to provide more relief to the flood hit people of the State, Kumar said.
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
| ACT NOW |
| MONTHLY | Rs 100 |  |
| YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
| LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |
