Guwahati: A high-level committee, under the chairmanship of Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, Amit Shah, has approved a number of disaster mitigation and capacity building projects for various states.
The meeting of the high-level committee, comprising Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and NITI Aayog vice-chairman Suman Bery as members, was held in New Delhi on Thursday (July 25).
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The high-level committee considered a total of nine proposals for funding from the National Disaster Mitigation Fund (NDMF) and National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to combat urban flooding in six cities.
In addition, the proposal also intends to mitigate Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) in four hill states and to strengthen the fire services in three states. The committee also considered a proposal to implement the ‘Yuva Aapda Mitra Scheme’ in all the 28 states.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has taken several initiatives to ensure effective management of disasters in the country. A number of steps have been taken to prevent any extensive loss to life and property during disasters by strengthening the disaster risk reduction system in India.
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During the meeting, the high-level committee approved three project proposals under the scheme for ‘Expansion and Modernisation of Fire Services in the states’ for Assam, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu of a total outlay of Rs 810.64 crore.
The Central government has allocated a total amount of Rs 5,000 crore under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) for this scheme and had already approved the proposals of 11 states at a total outlay of Rs 1,691.43 crore.
In addition, the high-level committee also approved a project proposal for GLOF risk mitigation for the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand at a total outlay of Rs 150 crore.
The GLOF Risk Mitigation Project will provide necessary impetus to these four states in taking necessary mitigation measures to address GLOF risks.
During the current financial year, the Central government has released Rs 6,348 crore to 14 states under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and Rs 672 crore to six states under the State Disaster Mitigation Fund (SDMF).
In addition, an amount of Rs 4,265 crore has been released to 10 states under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).