Bali terms Himachal’s relief package as landmark & generous

Cabinet-rank Minister and Chairman of HP Tourism Board, R S Bali, on Wednesday termed the state government’s special relief and rehabilitation package for the rain-affected families as landmark, humanitarian, and generous, despite the state having been denied expected help by the Centre in the hour of crisis.

Addressing a press conference, Bali said Rs 4,500 crore, of which Rs 1,000 crore will be MNREGA component, will help in the revival of the disaster-affected people, many of them having lost livelihoods, shelter, and cultivable land parcels.

The best highlight of the package is a substantial hike made in the amount of money given to every single affected family, much above the relief manual of the state and central government, without defining any income criterion for the aggrieved persons—rich or poor.

Under the special relief package, the compensation amount has been increased by up to 25 times.

Of the Rs 4,500 crore released by the government, Rs 750 crore will be spent on special relief packages, and Rs 1,000 crore will be spent under MNREGA. Apart from this, Rs 1,850 crore has been released from the state budget.

Of these, the Public Works Department and Jal Shakti Department have received an amount of Rs 1,000 crore. Rs 750 crore has been released under NDRF and SDRF, and Rs 150 crore will be spent to provide indirect benefits to the disaster-affected.

Bali said that under the special relief package, the compensation of Rs 1.30 lakh for a completely damaged house has been increased by five and a half times to Rs 7 lakh.

About 3,500 houses have been damaged due to the disaster in the state.