Guwahati: Railways will transport all relief materials to the flood-hit states in the Northeast including Assam free of cost, officials said on Monday.
The free transportation will be applicable for inter-state and intra-state aid and relief materials by parcel vans or second class, luggage cum guard van and goods trains, North East Frontier Railways spokesperson said.
All types of freight charges have been waived off for the purpose from any part of the country to the region and no ancillary charges like demurrage, wharfage or others will be charged for the transportation of relief materials, the official said.
Less than standard composition rakes can be booked with relief materials for the flood-affected region and non-governmental organizations can send relief materials free of cost to the flood-affected areas of the region like those of the government.
NGOs would, however, require proper approval from the divisional railway managers, who have been empowered to take decisions on any further additional facilities, including attaching additional coaches or vans to various Northeast bound trains.
In case of NGOs, the consignor or consignee must be the district magistrate or deputy commissioner in whose jurisdiction the dispatching or the receiving station is situated, he added.
A total of 134 people have so far lost their lives in the flood this year. According to the ASDMA bulletin, a total of 2,254 villages under 61 revenue circles remain affected by the current wave of floods across the state, while 1,91,194 people have taken shelter in 538 relief camps.