The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : State Government sanctions Rs. 59 crores

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Dec 18, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

State Government sanctions Rs. 59 crores

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, DEC. 17. On the eve of the Central team's visit to the flood-affected districts on December 18 and 19 to assess the damage, the Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, today ordered the sanction of Rs. 59.32 crores for relief and restoration work.

In a statement here, Ms. Jayalalithaa said the Central Government had constituted a team of experts led by D.S. Mishra, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, which would visit the flood hit areas, in response to her request to the Prime Minister through a memorandum on November 15 for an assistance of Rs.411.73 crores from the National Calamity Contingency Fund (NCCF) and her plea for deputing a team to assess the flood situation in the State. The team would be meeting her on December 20, she added.

Reports received from the District Collectors in the flood affected areas indicated that up to 178.79 km-long National Highways roads, 688 km-long major district roads, 1470.53 km of State Highways roads, 1613.49 km of other district roads, 309.3 km of municipal roads, 1074.40 km of rural roads, 3309.45 km of panchayat roads and 204.16 km of special panchayat roads were damaged due to floods in the last week of October, she said.

Apart from this, several culverts and bridges maintained by the Highways Department and Panchayat Unions had also been damaged. "On my instructions, temporary restoration of these roads to pre-flood levels has been going on. I have ordered the release of Rs.20 crores to the Collectors as the second instalment for temporary restoration of roads today. I have also sanctioned Rs. five crores for reconstructing the bridge across Manimuktha in Vriddachalam town, Cuddalore district, which had collapsed due to heavy floods and Rs.75 lakhs for a cause way in Vriddachalam", she said.

The Collectors had also reported that 1,424 river banks and channels and 473 tanks had been breached in the flood-affected districts. Action had been taken by them to close the breaches and strengthen the tanks and riverbanks. "I have also sanctioned Rs.10 crores for this purpose," she said.

Crop damage

The Chief Minister said that she had asked the Revenue and Agriculture Departments to make a detailed assessment of the crop damage due to floods. According to their assessment, 3.175 lakh acres had suffered damage and as per the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF) norms. Cash relief to alleviate this loss and provide assistance for the next alternative crop worked out to Rs.23.57 crores. "I have ordered that this amount may be released immediately to the affected farmers. Around 2.56 lakh farmers will be benefited by these relief measures."

Recalling that she had told the Assembly that Rs. five crores sanctioned by her on November 1 last was only the first instalment and further sanctions would be made for flood relief, she said that pending assessment of the damage by the Central team and sanction of assistance from the NCCF, she had sanctioned the amount now for relief and restoration.

She expressed the hope that the Centre would take note that the State Government had incurred "this expenditure despite having exhausted the amount that was available in the CRF in the hope that adequate relief would be forthcoming from the NCCF."

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu