₹ 47 Crore Allocated to BRO to Take-Up the Repair And Maintenance of the NH 1A from Jammu to Srinagar; an Ex-Gratia Payment Estimated at ₹ 551 Crore to 73000 Completely Damaged/Severely Damaged/Partially Damaged Kuchcha Houses Over and Above the Relief Provided Through SDRF /NDRF/PNMF etc; Department of Food and Public Distribution, Government of India Allocated 97,848 MTs of Rice and 20,320 MTs of Wheat for Relief Operations at MSP Cost to be Lifted by April, 2015; A  Team of Central Government Officers LED by CEO, Niti Aayog and Secretary (Expenditure), Ministry of Finance to Visit the State in the Next Week to Explore the Possibilities in Taking Into Account the Requirements of the State

During the floods in J&K State ₹ 770 crore was committed from the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund (PMRF). Further, an additional ₹ 1,000 crore was released by the Government of India as special project assistance under Special Plan Assistance (SPA). Now, the Government of India has decided to enhance the  immediate measures for Reconstruction and Restoration in the State of J&K, post-2014 natural calamities. The additional package towards immediate assistance comprises repair of NH-1A road from Jammu to Srinagar, additional allotment of food grains and assistance for reconstruction of individual houses, particularly of Kuchcha houses destroyed/damaged during the flood. Also, the Government has decided to target early completion of Tourism related projects and spill over projects under PMRP 2008.

The details of additional assistance towards immediate relief and reconstruction are as under:

Road and Highways sector:

Considering the importance of roads, Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has taken-up the repair and maintenance of the NH 1A from Jammu to Srinagar, including special repairs at three places, where recent floods have rendered the road to a narrow stretch. An amount of ₹ 47 crore for this purpose has been allotted to BRO.

Food Grains: 

The Department of Food and Public Distribution, Government of India had allocated 97,848 MTs of Rice and 20,320 MTs of Wheat for relief operations at MSP cost to be lifted by April, 2015 out of which 50,904 MTs of rice and 20,028 MTs of wheat have been lifted by the State till end of April. Government of India (GoI) has decided that balance quantity of 46,944 MTs of rice and 292 MTs of wheat may be lifted by the State at APL rates against the MSP rates decided earlier, for distribution to the affected areas. The differential price liability of ₹ 59.37 crore would be borne by the Government of India. The validity period for lifting is also being increased upto 30.9.2015.

Housing sector:

An Ex-gratia payment (estimated at ₹ 551 crore) to 73000 completely damaged/severely damaged/partially damaged Kuchcha houses over and above the relief provided through SDRF /NDRF/PNMF etc, shall be given. For completely damaged houses, ₹ 1.5 lac shall be provided, whereas for severely damaged ₹ 1.0 lakh and for partially damaged Kuchcha houses, ₹ 50,000/- shall be provided out of Demand operated by Ministry of Home Affairs.

Tourism:

To boost the economic activity in the State, the Government of India has decided to focus on improvement of infrastructure relating to tourism projects. Government of India shall provide additional assistance of ₹ 100 crore for construction of Government tourist assets in lieu of damaged/destroyed tourist assets. The pending grants of ₹ 72.34 crore to 12 Tourism development authorities in the State shall also be released. In addition, money shall also be provided for Completion of Tourist circuits in the State.

Government of India has also decided to fund the balance liabilities of the Prime Minister’s Reconstruction Plan of 2008 (PMRP-State sector) amounting to ₹ 838 crore from the Demand operated by Department of Expenditure as Central Assistance to State Plan which were funded through Special Plan Assistance (SPA) by erstwhile Planning Commission under State Plan.

The Government of India is also sympathetically considering the request of the State Government for undertaking long term measures to improve the infrastructure in the State. The Government will examine specific sectors like Power, Health, Roads and Highways, Tourism, Textile, Food processing, HRD and Water resources etc. for the long term measures. A team of Central Government officers led by CEO, NITI Aayog and Secretary (Expenditure), Ministry of Finance, Government of India will visit the State in the next week to explore the possibilities in taking into account the requirements of the State. 

Disaster reconstruction assistance expanded to fund road repairs, foodgrain relief and structured housing compensation for flood affected areas. Central government announces enhanced immediate reconstruction and relief assistance for Jammu & Kashmir after floods, providing central financial assistance for repair of a national highway by the Border Roads Organisation, subsidised and extended foodgrain allocations for relief distribution with the Centre covering the differential price, clearance of outstanding plan liabilities, and sectoral consideration for longer term recovery. The package establishes structured ex gratia housing payments for completely, severely and partially damaged kuchcha houses above existing disaster funds and additional targeted funding for tourism infrastructure and pending tourism grants, with central agencies to assess state requirements.