Centre clears ₹2 006 cr aid for himachal to tide over 2023 flood fury

Centre clears ₹2 006 cr aid for himachal to tide over 2023 flood fury

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.

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 Pradesh.

The central government had approved a recovery plan of ₹1658.17 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.

BJP national president and Union health minister JP Nadda, who belongs to Himachal Pradesh, thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and home minister Shah for the financial aid. He said the financial assistance is an important support for disaster victims.

Leader of the opposition in the state assembly and former chief minister Jairam Thakur, state BJP president Rajiv Bindal, former Union minister Anurag Thakur also thanked the Union government.