Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Oct 18: A high level Central team today toured twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch and village Saddal in Pancheri area of Udhampur district, which was flattened by fall of mountain killing 41 villagers. The second Central team visited Bandipora district in Kashmir to assess damages caused by devastating floods in first week of September.
The two teams—one each for Jammu and Kashmir regions comprising top officers of different Union Ministries have been sent by Home Minister Rajnath Singh for independent investigation of losses caused by the worst ever floods and rains in first week of September in terms of Government infrastructure, private property and loss of lives etc.
The team headed by M Gopal Reddy, Joint Secretary (Police) in Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will conclude its visit tomorrow and submit a comprehensive report to Rajnath Singh.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the Government of India wanted to be sure about the exact damages to private property and Government infrastructure before deciding on how to compensate Jammu and Kashmir in rebuilding process. J&K Government has sought Rs 44,000 special Central package from the Centre for rebuilding damaged infrastructure, public property etc.
DIG Udhampur-Reasi range Gareeb Dass said the Central team flew-in to village Saddal in Pancheri area of Udhampur district this afternoon and had on spot assessment of the damages caused there. The team inter-acted with the local people and civil officials.
Entire village Saddal was flattened after a mountain fell on it killing all 41 people. Twenty eight bodies and parts of bodies of two civilians have so far been recovered from the village while the villagers were still searching remaining 11 bodies. The Central team was in village Saddal for an hour and inquired from the people and officers about the tragedy and the ways the Government could compensate the survivors.
The DIG said civil and police officers of district administration briefed the Central team in Udhampur about total losses in floods in the district before it (the team) flew back to Jammu in the evening.
Earlier in the morning, the Central team visited twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri, which were badly affected by the floods.
Deputy Commissioner, Rajouri Jitendra Singh said he along with other officers apprised the Central team on losses of Government infrastructure including bridges, culverts, roads etc, private property of civilians and losses of human lives including Nowshera bus tragedy in which about 60 members of a marriage party including bridegroom were killed.
Singh submitted pictorial evidence of damages to the Central team and gave comprehensive presentation in support of the Central aid for compensation of the losses.
The Central team raised several queries pertaining to assessment of damages, which the Deputy Commissioner replied.
Earlier in the morning, the team had a tour of border district of Poonch, where they visited flood affected areas of Azad Mohalla, Shankar Mohalla, Sher-i-Kashmir bridge, a relief camp in Poonch town and some other areas before being briefed on the damages by Deputy Commissioner, Poonch MH Malik.
Malik apprised the team about massive destruction caused by the floods in Poonch.
In Pulwama district of Kashmir, the team visited Gadoora bridge, which was washed away in the floods and inspected damaged caused to agriculture land. DC Pulwama Sajjad Ahmad Khan briefed the team.
The Central team also visited Bandipora for on spot assessment of the damages.
The team for Jammu comprised Vivek Tripathi, Director Monitoring in Central Water Commission, Narendra Kumar, Assistant Director and Aditya Prakash, Superintending Engineer in the same Commission, AK Rajput, Director, Central Electricity Board, Ministry of Power, BL Meena, Assistant Director, Expenditure Monitoring in Ministry of Finance and Prakash Bhardwaj, Under Secretary, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj visited several areas of Jammu.
It may be mentioned that the Government of India had decided to undertake an extensive study of devastation caused by last month’s floods through its own two high level teams.
The Centre decided to carry out its own assessment of damages caused to public property and Government infrastructure after a memo submitted to the Centre by the State Government seeking an unprecedented Rs 44,000 crores worth package for relief and rehabilitation measures for flood victims and infrastructure.
The Committee constituted for Kashmir region will have a high level meeting with Chief Secretary Mohammad Iqbal Khandey, Principal and Commissioner Secretaries, Divisional Commissioner and equivalent officers tomorrow to take their assessment of the situation and modus operandi adopted by them in working out losses to the tune of Rs 44,000 crores, which have been sought from the Centre for relief and rehabilitation measures.
Initially, the Government had worked out the losses to the tune of Rs 1 lakh crores.
The Committees comprised top ranking officers of Ministries of Home, Animal Husbandry, Health, Finance, Rural Development, Agriculture and Road and Surface Transport. All these sectors have been badly affected by the floods. There will be two top officers of these Ministries in the Committee—one each in separate Panel constituted for Jammu and Kashmir region.
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