Over 1200 killed, more than 60,000 houses damaged due to hydro, meteorological disasters: Govt in Rajya Sabha

Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai said in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that there are well-established institutional mechanisms at the national, state & district levels in the country for taking appropriate preparedness and prompt response measures for effective management of natural disasters.

New Delhi: As many as 1,224 people lost their lives, and 61,136 houses were damaged across India due to the hydro-meteorological disasters including cyclones that hit the country this year till date, the government said in Parliament on Wednesday.

Maximum human casualties were reported in Bihar (502) followed by Madhya Pradesh 97, Gujarat 94, Himachal Pradesh 88, and Karnataka 78. During the same period, 25,558 cattle were lost and 4,04,676.54 hectares of crop were affected across the country. Informing this in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said that there are well-established institutional mechanisms at the national, state & district levels in the country for taking appropriate preparedness and prompt response measures for effective management of natural disasters.

“Central government has established a robust early warning system and has significantly enhanced the accuracy of weather forecasts. Mock exercises and community awareness programmes are being regularly conducted to create awareness among people,” he said in a written reply. Rai informed that the measures taken by the Central and State Governments have significantly improved the disaster management practices, preparedness, prevention and response mechanisms resulting in a significant reduction in casualties during natural calamities, including cyclones, in the country.

“Further, strengthening of disaster management is a continuing and evolving process of governance,” he said. He said that the scheme of financing the relief expenditure under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) is based on the recommendations of the successive Finance Commissions.

“The State Governments provide financial relief to the affected people in the event of notified natural disasters, from the SDRF, already placed at their disposal, in accordance with approved items and norms of the Government of India. However, in the event of a disaster of a severe nature, additional financial assistance is extended from the NDRF, as per the laid down procedure, which includes an assessment based on the visit of an Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT),” he said.

The financial assistance under the SDRF and the NDRF in the wake of notified natural disasters is given by way of relief and not for compensation of loss as suffered and claimed.

“In the case of loss of human lives, the extant norm provides ex-gratia payment to the families of deceased persons is Rs 4.00 lakh per deceased. Information on the compensation given to the victims or to kins of the victims is not maintained centrally by this Ministry, since the execution of relief activities on the ground is the responsibility of the State concerned,” he said.