'Centre to offer Rs 7000 cr for tsunami-hit states'

A separate package will be announced for modernisation of tsunami-hit Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Sharad Pawar said.

A financial package of Rs 7,000 crore for the tsunami-affected states would be announced by the Centre on Wednesday, Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said on Tuesday.

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A separate package will be announced for modernisation of tsunami-hit Andaman and Nicobar Islands, he told reporters on the sidelines of the seventh convocation of the Central Institute of Fisheries Education.

Of the Rs 7000 crore aid, Tamil Nadu government had sought Rs 4,800 crore, while the rest was being demanded by other states, the minister said.

Pawar said since 80 per cent of the tsunami-affected people belonged to fishing community, the government would also offer soft loans to fisherfolks to acquire modern boats and fishing nets at an interest rate of 7 per cent of which two per cent will be borne by the union government.

The borrowers of the soft loan will not have to pay any instalments for one-and-half years and thereafter clear the loan in seven instalments.

Pawar said that the Centre would rebuild Andaman and Nicobar Islands with a modern telecommunication system.

The government had plans to install tsunami warning system in all the major coastal towns and in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, he added.