Yet to receive central fund for flood damages, says West Bengal government

The West Bengal government today told the assembly that it is yet to receive any central grant from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) for the losses and damages caused by the monsoon flood in the state.

Finance Minister Amit Mitra replying to a question in the house, said that the state had incurred a huge loss by way of damage to crops, houses and property during the flood. The flood affected about 84 lakh people and 10,59,000 hectars of crop land besides damaging nearly five lakh houses covering all its affected areas in the state, he said.

But the government is yet to receive any central grant despite repeated appeals based on its self-assessed report since September 30 this year, Mitra said and expressed concern over the Centre's "indifferent attitude" in disbursing grant from NDRF. The state government, he said, had demanded Rs 6,068 crore for the losses and damages caused by the flood. "But not a single paisa has been received from the Centre yet," he said.

To tackle the situation immediately the state government had to spend Rs 782 crore from its own State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF), Mitra said in reply to a supplementary question in the house. To another supplementary, he said that a central team had arrived here on October 11 to assess the situation arising out of the losses and damages due to flood in the state.

On its return to New Delhi, the team had submitted its report to the Centre on October 14 but the state is yet to receive any grant. The Opposition members expressed concern over the situation and proposed to the minister on sending an all party team to the Centre.