Chennai: With the North East monsoon leaving a trail of destruction in Tamil Nadu, the state government today pegged the damage at Rs 8,481 crore, with Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to immediately release Rs 2,000 crore to sustain relief work.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, she said that 169 lives have been lost in various rain-related incidents since October 1, 2015.
Detailing the extent of the damage, Jayalalithaa told the PM that despite her government's preventive efforts, the state had suffered severe damage on account of the “extremely heavy and sustained” rainfall which, she said, had left a trail of destruction and that her government had allocated Rs 500 crore for relief work.
The assessment of damages and requirement of funds for immediate relief and restoration of infrastructure which she said had been speedily carried out indicated a much higher financial requirement.
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“The requirement of funds for immediate rescue and relief and the temporary and permanent restoration of infrastructure has been worked out at Rs.8,481 crore in all....” “This assessment has been made as an immediate measure since the Government of Tamil Nadu requires assistance from Government of India to meet the very high expenditure requirements that such a severe calamity has caused. The funds required are well beyond the resources available with the state, including the State Disaster Response Fund,” she said.
She requested Modi to depute a central team immediately to make its on-the-spot assessment of damage and to release central financial aid without any delay keeping in view the urgency of restoring many of the infrastructure facilities and services to the flood affected people.
“In the meanwhile, I request that an on account release of Rs 2,000 crore may be sanctioned immediately to enable the state government to sustain the relief and restoration operations with the same vigour,” Jayalalithaa said.
