New Delhi: Flood-ravaged Kerala may have to wait a few months to get the complete financial aid package from the Central government as the process of assessing the extent of damage and fund release is time-consuming, officials said. After the initial release of funds, the central government follows certain rules and guidelines before awarding the final aid to any state for a natural calamity, a home ministry official, privy to such circumstances, said. The Centre has so far released Rs 600 crore for Kerala, which witnessed its worst flood in a century.
According to the existing guidelines on disaster relief funds, the central government’s contribution to the State Disaster Response Fund is 75 per cent for general category states and 90 per cent for special category states of hilly regions. But the amount is released in each financial year in two instalments — in June and December.
Similarly, for getting relief from the National Disaster Response Fund, the state government will have to first submit a memorandum showing sector-wise damage with proper justification for requirement of funds and then it is assessed whether a case for additional assistance from NDRF is made out under the existing guidelines.
This itself is a time-consuming exercise for a state which is still trying to recover from the disaster, the official said. However, on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has assured Kerala Governor P Sathasivam that the flood ravaged state would get more central funds from the National Disaster Response Fund as per laid down procedure. Meanwhile, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has appealed to Malayalis across the globe to contribute a month's salary towards rebuilding new Kerala.
