Maharashtra govt sanctions Rs 11,500 crore for flood victims, repair works

Government said apart from providing immediate relief, a part of Rs 11,500 crore package will be spent on repair works and taking some long-term measures to address issues related to flood prevention

The Maharashtra government on Tuesday sanctioned a sum of Rs 11,500 crore for providing immediate assistance to rain and flood-affected people and to carry out repair works of infrastructure damaged in the deluge last month.

In a statement, the government said apart from providing immediate relief, a part of the Rs 11,500 crore package will be spent on repair works and taking some long-term measures to address issues related to flood prevention and mitigation. The state disaster management department made a presentation before Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on the recent floods and heavy rains after which the Maharashtra cabinet sanctioned the financial assistance, it said. Districts such as Raigad, Ratnagiri, Satara, Sangli and Kolhapur were badly affected due to floods and extremely heavy rainfall that pounded these districts from July 21 to 23. More than 200 people lost their lives in rain-related incidents like landslides and over two lakh people were forced to leave their homes.