Include lightning as disaster eligible for compensation: Home Ministry

People killed in lightening incidents may now be compensated by Indian government if a 

recommendation of the Union Home Ministry to this effect is accepted.

As India accounts for an average 400 deaths due to lightening every year, the Ministry has moved a proposal to the 14th Finance Commission, suggesting inclusion of lightning in the list of notified disasters eligible for assistance from national and state disaster relief funds.

At present, lightning is not among the eligible natural disasters for relief, official sources said.

The 14th Finance Commission will submit its report to the government by December 31.

The issue of inclusion of any disaster in the list of notified natural disasters has been considered by the successive Finance commissions set up from time-to-time.

The 13th Finance Commission had considered the proposal for inclusion of lightning. However, no recommendation has come from it for inclusion of lightning as one of the disasters qualifying for assistance from national and state disasters response funds.

The state governments are required to provide relief from their own resources, to the people affected due to lightning as per their relief codes and manual, the sources said.