Centre clears ₹2,006-cr aid for Himachal to tide over 2023 flood fury
Heavy rains had triggered floods and landslides in the state in July and August 2023 in which nearly 550 people had died. The Congress govt in Himachal Pradesh has been requesting the Union government to expedite the release of ₹9,042 crore under the post-disaster needs assessment for 2023-24.
A high-level committee, headed by Union home minister Amit Shah, has approved ₹2,006.40 crore in central assistance for Himachal Pradesh for the recovery and reconstruction efforts following the devastating floods, landslides, and cloudburst of 2023.
Heavy rains had triggered floods and landslides in the state in July and August 2023, and about 550 people died during the monsoon season. The Himachal Pradesh Congress government has been requesting the Union government to expedite the release of ₹9,042 crore under post-disaster needs assessment (PDNA) for the year 2023-24.
The committee, comprising Union finance and agriculture ministers and the vice-chairman of the NITI Aayog as members, considered the proposal for financial assistance to the state from the recovery and reconstruction funding window under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), an official statement said.
BJP leaders, including party chief JP Nadda, who is also from Himachal, expressed gratitude to the Union government for the ₹2,000 crore aid to Himacha, while Congress termed it “too little”.
Nadda said the financial assistance is an important support to the disaster-affected people in dealing with the crisis and providing relief to the disaster victims. Meanwhile, PWD minister Vikramaditya Singh, said, “It is a good move though a bit late. This will definitely help small contractors who have worked very hard during the disaster.”
Naresh Chauhan, principal media adviser to chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, said, “We were expecting more as the losses incurred by the state were of ₹10,000 crores which we had taken up with the centre. After much deliberations the Centre agreed to pay ₹2,584 crore out of which ₹2,000 crore. The amount given is not as per the expectation in terms of the losses incurred by the state. We will work out and see why the amount has been reduced so much.”
The high-level committee has approved the recovery plan of ₹2,006.40 crore to Himachal Pradesh, which will help the state in carrying out recovery and reconstruction activities, arising due to the damage and destruction occurred during the 2023 monsoon due to floods, cloudbursts and landslides, it said.
Of this, ₹1,504.80 crore will be the central share from the recovery and reconstruction funding window under the NDRF, it added.
On December 12, 2023, the ministry of home affairs approved an additional financial assistance of ₹ 633.73 crore from the NDRF for Himachal. The central government had approved a recovery plan of ₹1,658.17 crore for Uttarakhand in the aftermath of the Joshimath subsidence and of ₹555.27 crore for Sikkim in the aftermath of the Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) incident of 2023.
