Assam to give Uttarakhand Rs.1 crore for relief

The Assam government has decided to provide financial assistance of Rs.1 crore to Uttarakhand for relief and rehabilitation of the flood-hit people there, an official statement said Sunday.

The decision was taken by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi here, a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said, and added that besides this, ministers, parliamentary secretaries and legislators of the ruling party would also donate one month's salary to the flood-hit people of the hill state.

Meanwhile, all the 40 pilgrims from different parts of Assam, who were stranded in Uttarakhand, have been traced except 73-year-old Bhagwani Devi Somani of Jorhat.

"Out of the total 40 pilgrims, six have already reached Guwahati. The rest of the pilgrims are safe in Badrinath and Gaurikund," state Home Secretary G.D. Tripathi told IANS.

"A total of ten pilgrims from the state have been airlifted to safety," he said, adding rescue operations are on in full swing and that the entire episode would hopefully be resolved within a few days.

Assam's Commissioner & Secretary (Finance) Rajiv C. Joshi is camping in Dehradun for the past couple of days to monitor the situation and help the Uttarakhand administration.

Gogoi said the government is making necessary arrangements to transport the pilgrims from Delhi to Guwahati.