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Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi on Tuesday and apprised him that the state had suffered damages amounting to around Rs 1000 crore due to flash floods and cloudbursts, even as the monsoon had just begun, according to an official release
He informed that precious lives had been lost and key infrastructure including roads, bridges, buildings, irrigation schemes, water supply schemes and electricity supply systems had been severely affected during this disaster. The Chief Minister requested liberal support from the Central Government for relief and restoration works. He further said that natural disasters had become a recurring phenomenon since 2023 and the state had incurred cumulative losses of approximately Rs 21,000 crore over the last three years, as per release. He added that the state government was making every effort to provide relief to the affected people through the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). However, due to the repeated occurrence of such disasters, it had become increasingly difficult for the state to undertake restoration works and rebuild infrastructure with its limited resources. The CM Sukhu pointed out that the existing guidelines fixed by the Central Government regarding the sanctioning of relief and restoration activities were inadequate, considering the difficult topographical conditions of the state, the release said. He strongly urged for amendments in the existing norms, specifically raising the current limit from 10 percent to 30 percent, which would provide significant support to the state in its relief and restoration efforts. The Union Home Minister assured the Chief Minister of all possible assistance to the state. (ANI)
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