New Delhi, Mar 25 (UNI) The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday passed the Disaster Management (Amendment) Bill, 2024 by voice vote, rejecting the amendments moved by the Opposition, giving it the approval of Parliament.
The Lok Sabha has already passed this bill.
Replying to the discussion, Union Home Minister Amit Shah strongly rejected the Opposition's allegations of centralization, emphasising that the government does not engage in political considerations when allocating funds for disasters relief and sharing of national resources.
Rejecting the allegations of bias in giving relief funds to non-BJP ruled states, he said that no discrimination has been made with any state on the basis of law and rule and the prescribed amount has been given to them in full.
He said, "Money is given to the states as per the scientific system created for disaster relief. Modi government has not given a single penny less but has allocated more funds than before".
He said that the 10-point agenda presented by Prime Minister Modi to the world for disaster risk reduction has been accepted by more than 40 countries.
Shah said that this bill talks about moving from reactive approach to proactive approach, from manual monitoring to AI-based real-time monitoring, giving alerts through social media and mobile apps instead of warnings on radio.
Shah said, "Due to the changes that have taken place in the field of disaster management in the last 10 years, India has emerged as a power not only at the national level but also at the global level".
He praised the Modi government saying that it is working "on disaster management with foresight".
"On one hand, efforts have been made to prevent future disasters through environmental protection, on the other hand, if a disaster occurs, arrangements have been made to develop a well-equipped and organised system from village to Delhi to deal with it effectively in a scientific manner," he said.
The Home Minister responded to the members' objections by stating that the PM Cares Fund, established during the COVID-19 pandemic, is managed with complete transparency and without any political influence.
Shah said that this amendment has been made based on the need of the hour because the first law had become outdated. He said that the size and scale of disasters have changed, hence the methods of dealing with it also needs to be changed, that is why this bill has been brought.
He said that suggestions were taken from experts of the country and the world for the bill and it has been prepared by incorporating 89 percent of these suggestions.
He said that the government is trying to stop damage to the environment and compensate the losses in a scientific manner. He said that in Gujarat, the state government first introduced the disaster management law in 2003. The Modi government has set the target of zero casualty in disaster management and it is also being achieved.
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