Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan convoked a one-day special session of the state assembly on Thursday to discuss the rehabilitation and rebuilding efforts in the deluge ravaged state. He informed the Assembly that 483 people have lost their lives in the floods, 14 people are still missing, and 14,50,707 people were residing in relief camps, reported The News Minute.
Kerala CM informed, “The latest figure is there are 59,296 people in 305 relief camps. A total of 57,000 hectares of agricultural crops have been destroyed. An approximate estimate of the loss is more than the annual outlay of our state,” The New Indian Express quoted him as saying.
He said that the state is now going through the reconstruction phase. CM Vijayan added, “The floods have brought forth certain environmental issues. The relevant question here is if rehabilitation should be done on the ecologically sensitive areas, which are prone to soil erosion, landslides and floods. We should search for possibilities and, while doing reconstruction, bear in mind its environmental impact,” India TV reported.
Kerala CM declared that the state government would demand more funds from the Centre after the final monitoring of the damage would be complete. He said that the state has been offered financial help from many quarters across the world. CM Vijayan further apprised that the state’s policy is to accept help from anywhere, if it is in the best interest of the state, The New Indian Express report read.
The CM added, “Promises of assistance have been pouring in from various parts of the world. The government is looking for ways to get the funds to the state through legal ways,” reported The News Minute.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Vijayan also discussed the phases the state has to go through for facing disasters. He said, “The first is a rescue, which is over; the second is rehabilitation, which we are in right now; and the third is reconstruction. The Assembly has been convened to discuss how the new Kerala will be built.”
The CM told the special assembly, “The contribution to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund reached Rs 1027 crore on Friday. We saw a huge response for the suggestion that people donate a month’s salary to the distress relief fund,” India TV reported.
VS Achuthanandan, former Chief Minister and CPI (M) veteran said the disaster was man-made and put blame on the ‘lapses in policy’. He said, “The reason for the inundation was heavy rainfall. But there is no doubt that the destruction of hills and landslips increased the severity of the disaster. There were lapses in policy too.”
He further stated, “Legislations should be strict; the uncontrolled interference of nature in the name of development should be reined in. Illegal and unscientific constructions by encroaching forest land, by filling up paddy fields can’t be overlooked anymore. The Gadgil report was approached in a political manner, not scientifically.”
He emphasized that the construction should be carried out keeping in mind the environmental issues.