Key Points:
- The committee chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced additional assistance of Rs 4,381.88 crore to six states impacted by this year’s cyclones.
- On May 20 afternoon, the storm made landfall approximately 20 km east of Sagar Island in the Sunderbans.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced assistance of Rs 1,000 crore to West Bengal and Rs 500 crore to Odisha on May 23.
- The Centre authorized additional relief of Rs 268.59 crore to Maharashtra that’s been struck by Cyclone Nisarga in June.
On Friday, a high-level committee chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced additional assistance of Rs 4,381.88 crore to six states impacted by this year’s cyclones, floods as well as landslides.
As per the NDRF:
Under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), the West Bengal and Odisha states that were hit by Cyclone Amphan in May will receive Rs 2,707.77 crore and Rs.128.23 as additional assistance.
The cyclone caused havoc and left a trail of devastation and damage that killed nearly 100 people in West Bengal. Six hundred fifty-eight thousand people—500,000 in West Bengal as well as 158,000 in Odisha—were evacuated to secure spots before the start of Amphan.
On May 20 afternoon, the storm made landfall approximately 20 km east of Sagar Island in the Sunderbans, packing winds raging at a peak speed of 185 kilometres per hour, cutting off road ties, snapping telecommunications, and leaving parts of West Bengal without electricity.
Assistance for West Bengal and Odisha:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced assistance of Rs 1,000 crore to West Bengal and Rs 500 crore to Odisha on May 23, the day after his visit to the Amphan-hit states, which was released for immediate relief activities, the Centre said this in a statement.
It added that the Prime Minister also declared Rs 2 lakh ex-gratia for next of kin of the dead as well as Rs 50,000 for the wounded, which was above and beyond the ex-gratia offered by the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) as well as the NDRF.
Additional relief to Maharashtra:
The Centre authorized additional relief of Rs 268.59 crore to Maharashtra that’s been struck by Cyclone Nisarga in June. On June 3, the cyclone made landfall near the seaside town of Alibaug, some 100 kilometres south of Mumbai.
For at least seven coastal districts of Maharashtra, the weather bureau sounded a red warning, and about 60,000 people were evacuated from the state’s coastal area of Konkan by the state government.
Rs.577.84 crores also have been authorized for floods and landslides during the south-west monsoon for Karnataka, Rs 611.61 crore for Madhya Pradesh, and Rs 87.84 crore for Sikkim, the statement stated.
