Rajya Sabha Secretariat staff pitch in for Jammu and Kashmir flood relief

Employees in the Rajya Sabha Secretariat have contributed nearly Rs 9 lakh in aid for the victims of the devastating floods in Jammu and Kashmir. The staff put together an amount of Rs 8,99,683 for the noble cause and the same has now been deposited with the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund, said a release here.

An appeal was made to all the employees of the Secretariat for contributing a day's salary towards flood relief after the crisis in September wreaked havoc in many districts of J-K. Over 15 lakh families spread over 5,794 villages were affected by the floods, which left about 280 dead.

Around 3,44,607 structures were damaged while 90,000 cattle and other livestock perished in the calamity. Crop loss was reported over 6.52 lakh hectares of land besides destruction of public and private infrastructure.