Rajasthan has sought amendments in the parameters for the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) as well as an increase in the Central assistance in view of difficult geography of the State. The State government has affirmed that it was fully prepared to deal with any emergency situation needing urgent response.
State Disaster Management & Relief Minister Govind Ram Meghwal said at a meeting of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs in New Delhi that the disaster relief norms needed changes for making the relief and response system more robust and effective. “The parameters should be amended to make the funding “more appropriate and inclusive”, he said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah presided over the meeting at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on June 13. The factors needing assistance because of natural disasters highlighted by the State at the meeting included the death of the livestock, destruction of houses, loss of foodgrains stored in the houses and damage to the sewerage system.
Mr. Meghwal said the relief provided for loss of livestock should be increased to ₹1 lakh, while the destruction of houses and loss of foodgrains should be compensated with the actual amount of loss or a maximum of ₹1 lakh.
The Minister pointed out that the current SDRF parameters did not have the provisions for construction of storm drains, check dams and sewerage system. “If the fund’s parameters are amended, the affected people will get a major relief in terms of maintenance and repairs of these structures,” he said.
In a significant suggestion, Mr. Meghwal said the current provision of adjusting the agricultural input subsidy in the ceiling for claims under the Prime Minister’s Crop Insurance Scheme be deleted and the maximum land size for farm input subsidy be increased from two hectares to five hectares. He also suggested an increase of financial assistance in the category of cash crops.
