Central govt closely monitoring JK situation: Harsh Vardhan

Union health minister Harsh Vardhan has said New Delhi was fully geared up to take on the post-flash flood challenges in the state as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his team of officials were keeping a close vigil on the developing situation in the state.

Union health minister Harsh Vardhan has said New Delhi was fully geared up to take on the post-flash flood challenges in the state as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his team of officials were keeping a close vigil on the developing situation in the state.

"PM Narendra Modi and his officials are monitoring the situation and meetings are held on daily basis to take up the challenges ahead in the state to rebuild the damaged infrastructure, which has been destroyed in the floods ," said Vardhan, who landed here before moving ahead to Poonch to assess the situation there, on Saturday.

The minister would later move to Srinagar to take stock of the situation there.

On the health front, the union minister said the central government was aware of health-related infrastructure damaged there and all possible means were being put in place to reconstruct the entire infrastructure.

"Funds will not be any impediment in bringing the state back to its pristine glory and all departments in the capital are working in tandem to assess the damage to resurrect the state to its perfect normalcy," he said, adding immediate challenge for the union health ministry was to take up the likelihood of forth coming threat of water-borne diseases that may crop after the water recedes down in the valley and in the Jammu region.

"We have sent a comprehensive team of doctors from New Delhi to the valley and have sounded the nationwide alert to all health institutions to gear up to face the challenge. Delhi Medical Association as well as Indian Medical Association has been asked to prepare for the contingency plans for the state and after assessing the damage, if needed, specialists will be sent to the state," he noted.

In Jammu, the union health minister, besides, giving audience to the administration met the health department officials and Jammu municipal officials to get the feedback on the situation after the floods.

"We have assessed the relief operations in progress here and any support system required to further strengthened will be done immediately so that not a single stone is left unturned in reaching out to the people in Jammu and Kashmir," said Vardhan.

The union health minister assured that capital under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was mentally prepared to take up on any kind of eventuality.

He, however, denied taking on any political question saying that time and place was not optimum for talking politics in this hour of distress in the state.