People from areas under water for over 2 days to get financial

The BJP-led Maharashtra government on Friday drew flak for laying down a norm that financial aid would be given to people in those areas which had been under water for more than two days.

Slamming the government over the order, opposition Congress said if the Devendra Fadnavis dispensation is sensitive, it should scrap the order.

A Government Resolution (GR) issued on August 8 said, financial assistance will be provided if the area is inundated for more than two days due to flood, and if houses are completely washed away.

For urban areas, the per family financial assistance will be Rs 7,500 for clothes and equal amount for household items and utensils.

 

In rural areas, the assistance would be Rs 5,000 per family for clothes and equal amount for household items, utensils.

Another GR issued on August 7 said that 10 kg rice and 10 kg wheat would be given per family if the areas where they live were submerged in flood water for more than two days.

Reacting to the GR, state Congress president Balasaheb Thorat said the criterion set by the Devendra Fadnavis government for the financial assistance was a "cruel joke".

"Should the flood-affected people remain in water for two days for 10 kg rice and wheat?" he asked.

Thorat said if the government has a little sensitivity left, it should scrap the GR immediately.

Congress's campaign committee chief Nana Patole said when Fadnavis was busy with the 'Maha Janadesh Yatra', the Congress tried to bring the severity of the rain situation to his notice.

"Had Fadnavis asked his Karnataka counterpart to discharge water from the Almatti dam in time, the situation would not have been so serious," he said.

Patole also described as "mockery of people's hardships" the government's decision to provide 10 kg rice and wheat each to the affected people if they were in flood water for more than two days.

However, School Education Minister Ashish Shelar hit back at the Congress saying the party should have seen the January 30, 2014 GR, in which the rule was the area should be submerged for more than seven days.

The Congress-NCP's Democratic Front government was in power in Maharashtra for 15 years till the BJP-led dispensation came to power in October 2014.

"Our government is sensitive to the hardships of the flood-affected people. When the need of the hour is to ensure evacuation and rescue of flood-affected people, opposition was indulging in politics," he said.