Centre sanctions ₹2,006 crore to Himachal for 2023 disaster recovery
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New Delhi: The Central government has approved financial assistance of ₹2,006.40 crore to Himachal Pradesh for recovery and reconstruction efforts following the devastating floods, landslides, and cloudburst incidents that struck the state during the 2023 monsoon season.
A high-level committee chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah cleared the funding, which will support the state's rebuilding efforts under the Recovery and Reconstruction Funding Window of the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). The committee includes the Union Finance Minister, Agriculture Minister, and the Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog.
Of the total approved amount, ₹1,504.80 crore will be the Centre's share through the NDRF. This allocation aims to assist Himachal Pradesh in restoring critical infrastructure and recovering from the extensive damage caused by last year’s natural calamities. Earlier, on December 12, 2023, the Ministry of Home Affairs had sanctioned an additional ₹633.73 crore from the NDRF to support the state’s recovery.
The Central government has also extended similar recovery support to other states affected by major disasters. For Uttarakhand, ₹1,658.17 crore was approved in response to the subsidence crisis in Joshimath, while Sikkim received ₹555.27 crore following a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) incident in 2023.
In addition to state-specific aid, the government has approved a range of mitigation projects with a total financial outlay of ₹7,253.51 crore to address multiple hazards. These include ₹3,075.65 crore for urban floods, ₹1,000 crore for landslides, ₹150 crore for GLOFs, ₹818.92 crore for forest fires, ₹186.78 crore for lightning, and ₹2,022.16 crore for drought mitigation.
This latest assistance is over and above the funds already disbursed to states under various disaster response and mitigation schemes. In the current financial year 2024-25, the Centre has released ₹20,264.40 crore to 28 states under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and ₹5,160.76 crore under the NDRF to 19 states. Further, ₹4,984.25 crore from the State Disaster Mitigation Fund (SDMF) and ₹719.72 crore from the National Disaster Mitigation Fund (NDMF) have been released to support state-level disaster preparedness and resilience.
According to the official statement, “Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Government of India is standing shoulder to shoulder with the state governments during natural calamities and disasters.” The Ministry of Home Affairs, guided by Home Minister Amit Shah, has initiated several steps aimed at building a disaster-resilient India, strengthening disaster risk reduction systems, and reducing loss of life and property during such events.
With IANS inputs
