Odisha govt announces Rs 110‑crore flood relief package

Bhubaneswar, Aug 3 (AHN) Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday announced an initial relief package of Rs 110 crore for flood‑affected people and assured compensation to all eligible beneficiaries as per State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) norms, while intensifying relief, rescue and rehabilitation operations across the state.

According to the Chief Minister’s Office, the assistance will be provided to affected people immediately. Financial support for repair of damaged roads, bridges and other infrastructure will also be extended after the final damage assessment.

The state government said ex‑gratia assistance worth Rs 24 lakh will be provided to the next of kin of six people who lost their lives in the floods, in accordance with SDRF norms.

The announcement came as floods continued to affect 22 districts, 85 blocks, 656 gram panchayats, 1,458 villages and 15 urban local bodies, impacting around 8,63,909 people. Officials said 2,67,301 people have been evacuated to safer places, while 529 relief camps and 31 animal relief camps are operational.

Upon return from New Delhi, the Chief Minister conducted an aerial survey of flood‑hit areas and directed senior ministers to oversee relief and rescue operations. The government said response and rehabilitation work is being carried out on a war footing. Gratuitous Relief (GR) will be provided to all eligible flood‑affected families until normalcy is restored.

Families with fully damaged houses will receive Rs 1.20 lakh for repairs. Assistance of Rs 6,500 will be given for partially damaged pucca houses, Rs 4,000 for partially damaged kutcha houses, Rs 8,000 for collapsed huts and Rs 3,000 for damaged cowsheds.

Small and marginal farmers will receive compensation for crop and horticultural losses at Rs 8,500 per hectare for unirrigated land, Rs 17,000 per hectare for irrigated land and Rs 22,500 per hectare for all‑season crops.

Compensation has also been announced for livestock losses, including Rs 37,500 for each milch animal, Rs 32,000 for each draught animal, Rs 20,000 for each calf, donkey or mule, and Rs 4,000 for each goat or sheep.

Preliminary assessment shows 3,567 houses damaged and about 33,458.30 hectares of agricultural land affected. Relief operations are focused on Balasore, Bhadrak and Jajpur districts, where food, drinking water, healthcare, veterinary services, polythene sheets and other essentials are being supplied.

To strengthen rescue operations, 20 ODRAF teams, seven NDRF teams and 172 Fire Services teams, totalling 199 rescue units, have been deployed.

Senior officials are reviewing the flood situation round the clock. So far, 41 quintals of rice, 1,115 quintals of flattened rice, 496 quintals of jaggery, 3,869 polythene sheets and 1,816 metric tonnes of cattle feed have been distributed.

The government said advance assistance of Rs 26 crore had already been released to the worst‑affected districts, with further support to follow after final assessment.