Uttarakhand CM assures financial aid and treatment to disaster-hit families

Dehradun, Aug 24 (PTI) Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami announced that the state government will arrange for the treatment of the injured and provide financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the families of those who died and for damaged homes in disaster-affected areas.

These instructions were given as he reviewed the relief and rescue operations following the heavy rains in Chamoli district's Tharali, during a meeting at the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) here on Saturday night.

During heavy rains on Friday night, debris spread over a large area due to the flood in the Toonri rain drain in Tharali, due to which a 20-year-old girl died, while another person went missing.

In the incident, the Tharali Tehsil office, Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) residence, several houses, and shops were damaged while 150 people were evacuated.

After receiving updates about the work carried out throughout the day from the state's Disaster Management Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman and Chamoli District Magistrate Dr Sandeep Tiwari, Dhami reaffirmed the government's commitment to stand firmly with the people of Tharali during this crisis, and instructed all relief and rescue teams to work with urgency.

The chief minister emphasised that he is constantly monitoring the rescue operation. He also announced the Rs 5 lakh relief for the damaged homes and for the kin of the deceased.

He assured that the state government would make proper arrangements for the treatment of injured individuals.

Dhami urged officials to expedite the disbursement of permissible assistance to the injured, according to disaster standards. He directed them to ensure adequate provisions for food, refreshments, milk for children, medicines, bedding, and sanitation facilities for those staying in relief camps.

The chief minister praised the administration under the leadership of the district magistrate for its "quick response", due to which rescue and relief work could start immediately.

To reduce the loss of life and property due to such disasters in the future, Dhami called for dredging (removal of sand, gravel, stones from the river bed) or channelisation in all such rivers of the state that have settlements on their banks.

He requested that districts report on how the water level of rivers has been affected due to a lack of dredging, and emphasised that dredging work should be conducted under disaster management standards.

Stating that a large amount of debris and boulders came with the water in all three disasters at Dharali, Tharali, and Syanachatti, the chief minister said that it is necessary to assess the volume of moraine (debris deposited by glaciers) in the high Himalayan regions.

For this, he directed the formation of a high-level team of scientists from research institutes like Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS), Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), and National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) to conduct a study.

He also indicated that he would request the Central Government to conduct such a study across the Himalayan states to better understand the causes of these disasters and strengthen future disaster response efforts. PTI ANM VN ANM MPL MPL