As Himachal Pradesh continues to suffer from flashfloods and heavy rainfall, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday has directed the formation of a multi-sectoral central team. The team will investigate why natural disasters have been happening so often in the state in recent years.
The team will include experts from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) in Roorkee, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune, and IIT Indore.
Alongside this, an inter-ministerial team has been sent to Himachal to assess the damage caused by flashfloods, cloudbursts, and landslides during the current monsoon season. The team reached the state on July 18 and carried out an on-the-ground assessment of the damage in the rain-hit areas. It will continue its assessment till July 21.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Sukhu had met Amit Shah last week to request a relief package for the state.
A high-level committee, chaired by the Home Minister, had earlier approved Rs 2,006.40 crore for rebuilding areas hit by disasters in 2023. The first instalment of Rs 451.44 crore was released on July 7.
In addition, the Centre had already released Rs 198.80 crore from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) on June 18 to support immediate relief work.
The Centre has also sent help in the form of rescue teams and equipment. Thirteen teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are currently working in Himachal, along with support from the Army and Air Force.
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