Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday announced an initial flood relief package of ₹110 crore for people affected by the ongoing floods in Odisha, directing officials to ensure the immediate release of assistance while assuring that additional financial support would be provided after the final assessment of damages.
The announcement came after the Chief Minister conducted an aerial survey of the flood-hit regions and assigned ministers to monitor relief, rescue and rehabilitation operations in different affected districts. The state government said flood management activities are continuing on a war footing with the highest priority, with the administration working round the clock to restore normalcy.
The government said gratuitous relief would continue to be provided to all eligible families in flood-affected areas until the situation returns to normal. Under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) norms, families whose houses have been completely damaged will receive ₹1.20 lakh for repairs. Assistance of ₹6,500 has been announced for partially damaged pucca houses, ₹4,000 for partially damaged kutcha houses, ₹8,000 for damaged thatched houses and ₹3,000 for cattle sheds.
For crop and horticulture losses, small and marginal farmers will receive compensation of ₹8,500 per hectare for non-irrigated land, ₹17,000 per hectare for irrigated land and ₹22,500 per hectare for perennial crops.
The state government also announced ex gratia assistance for the families of six persons who lost their lives in the floods. The next of kin of each deceased will receive ₹24 lakh in accordance with SDRF norms.
Compensation has also been approved for livestock losses, including ₹37,500 for each milch animal such as a cow or buffalo, ₹32,000 for each draught animal, ₹20,000 for each calf, donkey or mule, and ₹4,000 for every goat or sheep lost in the floods.
According to the government, the floods have affected 85 blocks, 15 urban local bodies, 656 gram panchayats and 1,458 villages across 22 districts. Around 8,63,909 people have been impacted, while 2,67,301 persons have been shifted to safer locations as a precautionary measure.
A total of 529 relief camps and 31 animal camps are currently operational. Relief materials distributed so far include about 41 quintals of rice, 1,115 quintals of flattened rice (chuda), 496 quintals of jaggery, 3,869 polythene sheets and other essential supplies. Additionally, 1,816 metric tonnes of cattle feed have been supplied to support livestock owners.
Rescue operations are being carried out by 199 teams comprising 20 Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) teams, seven National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams and 172 Fire Service teams.
Preliminary estimates indicate that six people have died in the floods, 3,567 houses have been damaged and about 33,458.30 hectares of agricultural land have been affected.
The government said relief, rescue and rehabilitation operations are continuing on a war footing in the worst-hit districts of Balasore, Bhadrak and Jajpur, where food, drinking water, healthcare, veterinary services, polythene sheets and other essential assistance are being provided. It added that an advance assistance of ₹26 crore has already been released to the worst-affected districts to strengthen ongoing relief operations.
