Standing shoulder to shoulder with states: HMO as high-level committee approves over Rs 2000 crore aid to Himachal Pradesh

The Home Minister's Office (HMO) highlighted the decision in a post on X on Wednesday, stressing that the Narendra Modi-led central government "stands shoulder to shoulder with states" in times of natural disasters.

In the financial year 2024-25, the Centre has allocated Rs 25,425.16 crore to states under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF), the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said.

"The Central Government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is standing firmly with the states in times of disasters without any discrimination. In this direction, a high-level committee headed by the Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah approved assistance of Rs 2006.40 crores to Himachal Pradesh for reconstruction in areas affected by disasters like floods, landslides and cloudbursts for the year 2023. The Home Ministry had also given additional financial assistance of Rs 633.73 crores to Himachal Pradesh in December 2023 for relief and rehabilitation from this disaster," read a post by the Union Home Minister's office.

https://x.com/HMOIndia/status/1935218596520898711

The high-level committee comprises Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Suman Bery, who considered the proposal for financial assistance to the State from the Recovery and Reconstruction funding window under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).

According to an official statement from the Union Home Ministry, Rs 1504 crore will be the central share of the more than 2000 crore from the Recovery and Reconstruction Funding Window under the National Disaster Response Fund.

On December 12, 2023, the Ministry of Home Affairs approved additional financial assistance of Rs 633.73 crore from the NDRF for Himachal Pradesh, which was affected by this disaster.

"Under the leadership of PM Modi, the Government of India is standing shoulder to shoulder with the state governments during natural calamities and disasters. To fulfil PM Modi's vision of a disaster-resilient India, the Ministry of Home Affairs, under the guidance of Home Minister Amit Shah, has taken several initiatives to ensure effective management of disasters in the country," the ministry's statement added.

According to the statement, the Centre has approved a number of mitigation projects with an overall financial outlay of Rs 7253.51 crore to mitigate the risks of various hazards, including urban floods (Rs. 3075.65 crore), Landslides (Rs.1000 crore), GLOF (Rs. 150 crore), Forest Fire (Rs. 818.92 crore), Lightning (Rs. 186.78 crore), and Drought (Rs. 2022.16 crore).

The Centre has also approved recovery plans for the states of Uttarakhand and Sikkim.

Uttarakhand was sanctioned Rs 1,658.17 crore in the aftermath of the Joshimath subsidence, while Rs 555.27 crore was allocated for GLOF-related damages in Sikkim in 2023.