CHANDIGARH: Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring on Monday urged the Punjab governor to persuade the Centre to release additional funds to provide compensation for the losses incurred by the flood-hit people of the state.
Warring also urged the governor to recommend to the Punjab government to hold an emergency session to reassess the budgetary expenditure for the remainder of the year. He stressed the need for creation of a dedicated fund in order to effectively alleviate the sufferings caused by the floods.
To address the plight of the victims and meet the financial requirements, Warring stressed the urgent release of funds for Punjab. He highlighted the complete destruction of crops in approximately 5 lakh acres, leading to significant losses to the farming community.
Warring also proposed compensation of at least Rs 50,000 per acre for affected farmers, Rs 5 lakh for those whose houses were damaged, an ex gratia payment of Rs 5 lakh per for each injured person, and Rs 25 lakh per person for the families who lost their sole breadwinners.
The Congress leader also emphasised the necessity of providing financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh to the shopkeepers who suffered losses to their businesses and Rs 50,000 to the owners whose cattle perished in the natural calamity.
He said Punjab required financial aid to initiate the repair and reconstruction of infrastructure such as roads, bridges, schools, and hospitals that were damaged by the floods. Punjab needs approximately Rs 10,000 crore in assistance from the central government, said Warring.
The PPCC chief lamented that the Centre had allocated a paltry Rs 218 crore for flood-hit Punjab, which he said was not enough to meet the emergency situation. “I humbly request you to use your good office to appeal to the central government to release needed money from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), PM Relief Fund and Contingency Fund of India to compensate the Punjab farmers and to rehabilitate the flood-hit victims in the state,” said Warring.
