New Delhi, June 18 (UNI) In a significant step towards rebuilding disaster-affected regions, a high-level committee, chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday approved Rs 2006.40 crore in Central assistance to Himachal Pradesh.

The financial aid is earmarked for recovery and reconstruction activities in the wake of the devastating floods, landslides, and cloudbursts that struck the state in 2023, a Home Ministry statement said.

The committee, comprising of Finance Minister, Agriculture Minister and Vice Chairman NITI Aayog as members considered the proposal for financial assistance to the state from recovery and reconstruction funding window under National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).

The committee has approved the recovery plan of Rs 2006.40 crore to Himachal Pradesh, which will help the state in carrying out recovery and reconstruction activities, arisen due to damage and destruction that occurred in 2023 monsoon due to floods, cloudbursts and landslides.

Out of this, Rs 1,504.80 crore will be the Central share from recovery and reconstruction funding window under NDRF. Earlier, on December 12, 2023, the Ministry of Home Affairs had approved additional financial assistance of Rs 633.73 crore from the NDRF for Himachal Pradesh, which was affected by this disaster.

The statement said that the Central government stands shoulder to shoulder with state governments during natural calamities and disasters.

To fulfill Prime Minister Modi’s vision of disaster-resilient India, the MHA has taken several initiatives to ensure effective management of disasters in the country. A number of steps have been taken to prevent any extensive loss to life and property during disasters by strengthening disaster risk reduction system in India.

The Central government had approved recovery plans for the states of Uttarakhand (Rs 1658.17 crore) in the aftermath of Joshimath subsistence and for Sikkim (Rs 555.27 crore), in the aftermath of Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) incident of 2023.

The Central government had approved a number of mitigation projects with overall financial outlay of Rs 7,253.51 crore, for mitigating the risks of a number of hazards in the areas of 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).

This additional assistance is over and above the funds released by the centre to states in the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF), already placed at the disposal of the states.

During the financial year 2024-25, the Central government has released Rs 20,264.40 crore to 28 states under SDRF and Rs 5,160.76 crore under NDRF to 19 states. Additionally, Rs 4984.25 crore from the State Disaster Mitigation Fund (SDMF) to 19 states and Rs 719.72 crore from National Disaster Mitigation Fund (NDMF) to eight states has also been released.

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