Friday, Feb 04, 2005
Friday, Feb 04, 2005 |
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Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary | Kerala
By Our Special Correspondent
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, FEB. 3. The Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, today apprised the State Assembly of the difficult task ahead in rehabilitating the tsunami victims amid all round criticism regarding the delay in getting the second phase of the rehabilitation programme off the ground. Admitting to delays in initiating the second phase of the programme, the Chief Minister, while replying to a special debate on the tsunami, listed out three main hurdles in the process. He said the most difficult task was to identify the eligible persons. The Government had the responsibility to ensure that the affected people were settled in safe places. It also had to ensure that procedures were followed, though it would not baulk at simplifying them to ensure speedy relief and rehabilitation. He said that even though the Government and voluntary agencies had come forward to construct houses, many were reluctant to leave the affected areas. The Chief Minister made these observations in the light of criticism that the second phase of rehabilitation was getting delayed. The members who participated in the debate were all praise for the State Government's action in reaching relief to the affected persons. Mr. Chandy, differentiating the first and second phase, said that the Government had set aside procedures regarding expenditure while providing relief as soon as the tsunami struck. But in the second phase, procedures had to be observed in order to make the process transparent. He reiterated the Government stand that funds would not be a constraint in the rehabilitation work. He said that a 10-member committee of experts had prepared the building design.
Burial expenses
The Chief Minister agreed to the Opposition demand that the burial expenses should be excluded from the Rs. 1 lakh the Government paid as compensation. He also said that the State Government had taken the responsibility to ensure that the financial assistance promised by the Centre reached the affected persons. He informed the House that the Centre had informed the State that it would directly remit the amount to the bank accounts of the victims. The Government would also work out a scheme to look after orphaned children.
Demand rejected
Earlier, the Revenue Minister, K.M. Mani, rejected the Opposition demand for setting up popular committees at the local level to ensure proper implementation of the rehabilitation work. He feared that popular committees would hinder the implementation of the rehabilitation work. Besides, all decisions were being taken in consultation with the people's representatives and other prominent persons in the respective areas. Both the Chief Minister and the Revenue Minister appealed to all political parties to help it identify the real victims. The Fisheries Minister, Dominic Presentation, said that his department had recommended writing off Rs.7 crores taken as loan by fishermen living in the tsunami-affected areas. The Water Resources Minister, Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, gave a brief account of the steps taken to construct seawalls in the affected areas.
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