Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis. (Express photo)
THE STATE government has constituted a permanent cabinet sub-committee to take decisions about compensation to be paid to people affected by disasters. The compensation would be given according to rates fixed in May 2015.
Officials from the revenue and rehabilitation department said the sub-committee has been given the powers to grant compensation and would not need the approval of the state cabinet. “As per the guidelines of the National Disaster Response Fund, the compensation would be disbursed immediately at the district level for deaths or injured persons, animal deaths and house collapse during calamities such as unseasonal rains, excessive rainfall, fire and others. The compensation will be given to affected people as per the revised rates fixed in May 2015,” said an official.
The official further said that the sub-committee would take decisions following remarks from the finance department. “The cabinet sub-committee has been given powers to provide special assistance for the losses due to man-made calamities and for events such as crop loss, land erosion and losses to fishermen due to local calamities that do not fall in the criteria of natural calamities.”