Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced an initial assistance package of Rs 110 crore for flood-affected people on Monday, as the state government launched a survey to evaluate the destruction caused by the deluge. The calamity has claimed at least six lives and damaged 3,567 homes across the state.
Underscoring that the state government stands firmly behind the impacted population, CM Majhi instructed officials to undertake rehabilitation and restoration works on a war footing and ensure preliminary relief funds are disbursed without delay.
He noted that comprehensive financial package will be unveiled following the completion of the damage assessment caused by the ongoing floods.
According to the Chief Minister’s directives, Gratuitous Relief (GR) will be extended to all eligible beneficiaries and families in flood-hit areas, and this assistance will continue till normalcy returns, an official said.
“The state government stands rock-solid with every affected family,” a statement released by the CMO said, adding that flood response, rescue, relief and rehabilitation remain the administration’s highest priority.
Prior to this announcement, the state government had released Rs 26 crore in advance funding for immediate rescue and relief operations. The newly announced Rs 110 crore package will address housing damage, agricultural losses, and livestock fatalities in accordance with State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) norms, it said.
Meanwhile, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari stated that a joint assessment team from the Revenue and Agriculture departments has been launched ground surveys in regions where floodwaters have receded. The survey teams will assess house damage, human casualty and livestock and crop losses.
The minister said that the families whose houses have been completely damaged will be provided a compensation of up to Rs 1.2 lakh each. While those with partially damaged ‘pucca’ houses will be given Rs 6,500, and for ‘kutcha’ houses, the compensation will be Rs 4,000 and households with fully damaged huts will receive Rs 8,000 each.
Similarly, Rs 3,000 will be provided for damage to animal sheds in the flood-affected areas. The minister further added that as per an initial estimate, about 33,458.30 hectares of agricultural land has been affected.
To compensate affected farmers, Pujari announced input subsidies based on land type:
- Rain-fed agricultural land: Rs 8,500 per hectare
- Irrigated agricultural land: Rs 17,000 per hectare
- Perennial crop land: Rs 22,500 per hectare
The CMO release further stated that the flooding has impacted 8,63,909 people across 22 districts, affecting 1,458 villages across 85 blocks. As per the SDRF guidelines, the next of kin of the six deceased individuals will receive ex-gratia compensation of Rs 4 lakh each (totalling Rs 24 lakh).
Additionally, the mother of a deceased firefighter, who lost his life during flood relief operations, will receive Rs 1.05 crore covering insurance payouts and government death-in-service benefits.
To further strengthen the rescue and relief operations, a deployment of 190 specialist teams, including 20 Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) units, 7 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams, and 172 Fire Service units, are continuously working in the affected districts
The government also claimed that the relief and rehabilitation measures are currently prioritized in the severely impacted districts of Balasore, Bhadrak, and Jajpur.
