Amit Shah
NEW DELHI: Home minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said the Centre is standing shoulder to shoulder with Punjab and is committed to providing all possible help to the state’s flood-affected people.Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann had called on Shah in Delhi and apprised him of the extent of damage in the state in the aftermath of the recent floods. He also made a demand for sanction of additional funds for disaster relief and restoration.Mann was told Punjab’s state disaster response fund has sufficient funds, to the tune of Rs 12,589 crore, which can be utilised for the purpose as per the central norms. The Centre has provided all possible assistance to the state administration through its agencies in search, rescue and immediate restoration.In a statement, the Centre said PM Narendra Modi had visited Punjab on Sept 9 and reviewed the flood situation and damage. Out of a financial assistance of Rs 1,600 crore announced by the PM, Rs 805 crore, including 170 crore under sanction by NHAI, has been released to the state/ intended beneficiaries under various schemes, and the rest will be released on receipt of relevant information from Punjab. Further, an inter-ministerial central team was constituted on Sept 1 and it visited the affected areas from Sept 3-6 for on-the-spot assessment of damage. However, Punjab is yet to submit a detailed memorandum to the central govt for funds to cover the damage.The state can also prepare a recovery and reconstruction plan for restoration of livelihood and damaged infrastructure as per central guidelines.
