JAMMU, Sept 1: Union Home Minister Amit Shah today said an amount of Rs 209 crore has been allocated by the Central Government to Jammu and Kashmir for State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) as the Central share, due to which relief work has started in the aftermath of damages caused by flashfloods and landslides triggered by cloudbursts and heavy rains
Flanked by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Shah this morning undertook a tour of Tawi bridge. Later, he visited village Mangu Chak to assess damages caused by floods.He chaired three back-to-back meetings at Raj Bhawan. First meeting was related to take detailed assessment of the situation because of heavy rains in the region; second, with BJP MPs and MLAs led by UT party chief Sat Sharma ‘CA’ and third with top security brass for high-level review of the security situation.“Jammu and Kashmir is prone to natural calamities. Therefore, an amount of Rs 209 crore for SDRF has been allocated to the UT as Centre share, due to which relief work has started,” Shah said, adding that advanced survey teams from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) would assess the damage and further assistance would be provided.
He announced that a meeting of relevant departments from the Central Government and J&K UT administration along with Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan , would be held within a day or two and the MHA and UT Government teams should prioritize damage assessment.
He emphasized that the Health and Water Departments must proactively focus on water supply and health services and called upon medical units from Army, Central Armed Police Forces and Air Force to render help.
Assuring people of Jammu and Kashmir that the Government of India is standing firmly with them in this hour of crisis, Shah reiterated that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Central Government is committed to providing prompt relief, financial assistance, and technical support to facilitate recovery and reconstruction while ensuring safety and well-being of affected communities.
“A critical analysis of All Early Warning Apps (EWAs), their accuracy, and their reach to the grassroots level is necessary,” the Home Minister said and called for improving systems through critical analysis saying this is the only way to move forward towards a zero-casualty approach.
He stressed for critical review of GLOF Early Warning System.
Shah said the Meteorological Department and National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) should jointly study the relationship between the tendencies leading to cloudbursts and moisture content in clouds, identify causes and establish an early warning system.
He stressed that the MHA must take steps in this direction by leveraging data analytics and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
“The Food Corporation of India (FCI) should arrange for additional rations, and a decision on offline ration delivery could be made after assessing connectivity in 10 days,” he added.
Shah asserted that timely warnings by the Central Government and Union Territory Disaster Management Authority (UTDMA) helped in minimizing loss of lives. NDRF, Army, UT Disaster Response Force, Other Response Teams, were on alert and helicopters were also standby.
“We had also informed everyone about mobilization of Army and NDRF”.
Shah said that private property of people has been damaged and assistance under SDRF for damaged houses is being assessed and will be disbursed in shortest possible time. He added that multiple roads have been damaged and repair & restoration work has started.
“Traffic movement has resumed on most of the roads and relief has also started arriving, wherever needed. More than 80 percent electricity supply has been restored in affected areas, people have started receiving pure drinking water and health facilities are running smoothly,” he added.
The Home Minister said infrastructure of critical sectors has been affected and its temporary restoration is underway at war footing. The damages are being assessed by the UT Government and all possible assistance will be provided, he asserted.
Appreciating efforts of all the agencies, Shah said that the UT Government carried out the successful rescue operation very quickly and efficiently with more than 5000 people evacuated to safer places as a precaution.
“As many as 17 teams of the NDRF and 23 Army columns, helicopters from Indian Air Force, UTDRF, J&K Police and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) personnel are still engaged in the entire operation and helping people. Health facilities and food arrangements have been made in relief camps by the UT Government and the situation will return to normal very soon,” the Home Minister said.
Earlier, in the morning, Shah visited rain, flood, and landslide affected areas of Jammu division and took stock of the damages caused by the natural calamity. He met the flood-affected people in Mangu Chak village on the outskirts of Jammu and interacted with them to know the issues because of heavy damages caused by the floods. He assured the people affected by floods about all possible help from the Government.
“Today, visited Chak Mangu (Manguchak), a village affected by the recent floods in Jammu. Relief and rescue operations are being carried out in full swing by disaster response forces, along with providing assistance in medical care to the affected people. The Modi Government is committed to taking adequate measures for the rehabilitation of the affected people,” Shah said in a post on X.
Shah stopped on the Tawi bridge, near Bikram Chowk, and inspected the damage along the riverbanks. He was briefed by Jammu Divisional Commissioner Ramesh Kumar and other senior officers. He also offered prayers at Lord Shiva temple on the banks of Tawi river.
“The Home Minister visited my house and assured me of relief…. There is nothing left in the house after last week’s deluge,” Bhan Singh, a resident of Manguchak, said after Shah’s visit.
The middle-aged man said he has never witnessed such a flood in his life.
“It damaged all household goods like refrigerators, air-conditioners and even clothes,” he added.
Another resident, Chain Dass, said he was lucky to survive the deluge, which submerged the entire village.
“We are happy that the Home Minister visited us and took stock of the situation,” he said, hoping that authorities will drain the water and take steps to ensure that such a flood never recurs.
He claimed that the village got flooded due to the construction of a circular road.
Shah expressed grief over the loss of lives in the recent incidents.
At his flood review meeting, Shah said that in this hour of crisis, from the very first day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and the Government of India has put in all its strength in the rescue efforts.
Shah said that the Union Territory and all agencies together have significantly reduced potential damage, and through coordinated efforts, “we have successfully saved many lives”.
More than 130 people have been killed and 33 have gone missing in cloudbursts, landslides and flash floods in Kishtwar, Kathua, Reasi and Ramban districts of Jammu and Kashmir since August 14.
The dead include 34 pilgrims who were hit by a landslide en route to the Vaishno Devi shrine on August 26 and 65 persons, mostly yatris, who lost their lives at Chashoti in Kishtwar district on way or return from Machail Mata Ji temple.
Record rainfall on August 26-27 caused flash floods in low-lying areas in Jammu and other plains, causing heavy damage to infrastructure.
Shah also reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir at a meeting here and reiterated Centre’s zero-tolerance policy against terrorism.
He instructed all security agencies to remain alert and operate in a coordinated manner to eliminate terrorism in the Union territory.
The Home Minister was chairing a meeting at Raj Bhavan here, which was attended by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, Director IB Tapan Deka, Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo, DGP Nalin Prabhat, heads of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and other senior officers, an official spokesman said.
While taking stock of the security situation, Shah appreciated the efforts of the UT administration and security agencies for the smooth conduct of the annual Shri Amarnath Yatra. More than 4,00,000 pilgrims offered prayers at the shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas this year.
Shah also appreciated the role played by the security forces in relief and rescue work following the recent flash floods in the UT and assured full support of the CAPFs in managing natural calamities, the spokesman said.
The Home Minister arrived in Jammu last night to assess the flood situation and the relief efforts and returned to New Delhi this evening.
