Kerala yet to submit detailed report on flood damage, compensation may get delayed: Officials

The Kerala government is yet to submit a detailed report on the damage caused by the recent floods, which may lead to the delay in sanctioning compensation to the state, officials said on Wednesday.

The central government will start the process of giving funds to Kerala for the damage caused by floods, when the state government sends a detailed report citing the loss of human life, properties, infrastructure and crops.

The memorandum from Kerala is yet to come. When it comes, an inter-ministerial team will be sent to the state for the verification of the damage, a government official said.

On the basis of the report of the inter-ministerial team, a high-level committee, headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh will decide on the compensation amount to be given to Kerala.

The inter-ministerial team will be sent to Kerala within days of receiving the memorandum from the state government, the official said.

At least 488 people have died in Kerala due to the rains and floods this monsoon, which hit 14 districts of the state.

On August 21, the central government had released Rs 600 crore to flood-hit Kerala as promised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Rs 500 crore) and Home Minister Rajnath Singh (Rs 100 crore) during their visits to the state.

This was in addition to Rs 562.45 crore already made available in State Disaster Relief Fund of the state.

Financial mechanism to meet the rescue and relief expenditure during any notified disaster event is governed by notified guidelines on State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), another official said.

State Disaster Response Fund has been constituted in each state in which the Centre contributes 75 per cent for general category states and 90 per cent for special category states of hilly regions every year according to the award of the successive Finance Commissions.

According to the guidelines, the Centre provides its allocation to SDRF of each state in advance in two installments. In case of any natural calamity, the state meets the expenditure of relief and rescue from the State Disaster Response Fund already available at its disposal.

In case of any natural calamity beyond the coping capacity of a state, the state government submits a detailed memorandum indicating sector-wise details of damage and requirement of funds for relief operations of immediate nature.

On receipt of a memorandum, an Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT) is deputed by the central government for on-the-spot assessment of damage and additional requirement of funds.

The IMCT report is considered by the Sub-Committee of National Executive Committee (SC-NEC) headed by the Union home secretary in conformity with the norms and then by a high-level committee, chaired by the home minister for approving the quantum of additional assistance from the NDRF, the official said.