Jammu, Aug 5: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said the government’s focus has shifted from rescue and recovery to rehabilitation and reconstruction in the cloudburst and flash flood-hit areas of Poonch and Rajouri, while indicating that a decision on a special relief package would be taken after a comprehensive assessment of the damage.
Abdullah arrived in Surankote area of Poonch this morning to assess the ground situation in the flash flood and landslide-affected areas following the rain fury, which had claimed 16 lives and left six others missing in the border district of Poonch.
He commenced his tour with a visit to Murrah village where he met a villager, who lost eight members of his family in cloudburst-triggered flash floods and landslide on July 19.
Talking to reporters in Surankote, Abdullah said the immediate priority after the recent floods and landslides triggered by cloudbursts was to speed up rescue operations, trace the missing persons and undertake recovery efforts.
“Now the time has come for rehabilitation and reconstruction. We have to rehabilitate those whose houses have been completely destroyed and also assist those whose houses are still standing but have suffered extensive damage,” the chief minister said.
He said the disaster had caused extensive damage not only to residential houses but also to public infrastructure, including flood protection works, roads, schools, hospitals and other government assets.
Abdullah said he would chair a meeting with senior officers in Poonch later in the day after visiting more affected areas to assess the ground situation and finalise measures to provide all possible assistance to the affected people.
He said the government would also consider any proposals submitted by the district administration.
Referring to the relief measures taken after the devastating floods of 2014, he said six months’ free ration had then been provided across Jammu and Kashmir and a similar proposal, if recommended by the district administration for the worst-affected areas, particularly where standing crops have been damaged, would be examined favourably.
The chief minister said the damage was not confined to Poonch alone, with neighbouring Rajouri also suffering heavy losses.
“I cannot announce any package exclusively for Poonch while standing here today. I will visit Rajouri tomorrow (Thursday) and thereafter we will review the overall situation in Srinagar. If a special relief package is required, we will certainly make the necessary arrangements,” he said.
He, however, made it clear that relief packages could only be announced after the assessment process and administrative formalities were completed.
The chief minister also said compensation for the affected families was already being processed.
“The funds are ready and have been sanctioned. As soon as we receive the remaining bank account details of the beneficiaries, the money will be credited to their accounts,” he said.
Earlier in a post on X handle, the office of the chief minister said Abdullah visited Murrah in Surankote to offer condolences to the family that lost its loved ones in the recent cloudburst.
“He expressed solidarity with the bereaved family and assured it of all possible assistance and support from the Government,” the post read.
The cloudburst-triggered flash flood and landslide on July 19 at Murrah had claimed the lives of eight members of Mohammad Latief’s family.
Latief survived as he had stepped out to move his car just minutes before the flash flood and landslide swept away his house in the dead of the night. While the bodies of four of his family members have been recovered, the remaining four are still missing despite ongoing search operations.
Surankote was the worst-hit area, accounting for the majority of the fatalities in the July 19 rain-related disaster. Torrential rains triggered cloudbursts, flash floods and landslides, causing widespread devastation, sweeping away houses and vehicles, damaging roads and other infrastructure, and leaving hundreds of families affected across the district.
Abdullah had on July 19 chaired a high level officers meeting in Jammu to take stock of the situation post heavy rainfall and announced an ex gratia relief of Rs 6 lakh for the next of kin of those killed in rain-related incidents in Poonch and adjoining Rajouri district where three persons lost their lives and one remained missing.
