Even as the Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced an amount of Rs 209 crore has been allocated by the Central Government to Jammu and Kashmir for State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) as the Central share, the relief work started in the aftermath of damages is a massive task for the government, given the enormity of damages across UT, particularly Jammu region. Ex-CM Mehbooba Mufti has urged the Centre to arrange one special cargo train to ensure essential supplies to J&K in time.
The Home Minister Amit Shah who reached Jammu on Sunday chaired three back-to-back meetings at Raj Bhawan. First meeting was related to take detailed assessment of the situation because of heavy rains in the region; second, with BJP MPs and MLAs led by UT party chief Sat Sharma and third with top security brass for high-level review of the security situation.“Jammu and Kashmir is prone to natural calamities. Therefore, an amount of Rs 209 crore for SDRF has been allocated to the UT as Centre share, due to which relief work has started,” Shah said, adding that advanced survey teams from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) would assess the damage and further assistance would be provided.
He announced that a meeting of relevant departments from the Central Government and J&K UT administration along with Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan , would be held within a day or two and the MHA and UT Government teams should prioritize damage assessment.He emphasized that the Health and Water Departments must proactively focus on water supply and health services and called upon medical units from Army, Central Armed Police Forces and Air Force to render help. Later, he visited several areas to assess damages caused by floods.
Meanwhile, with the Jammu–Srinagar National Highway (NH-44) badly damaged due to landslides and floods, essential supplies to the Kashmir Valley have been severely hit. In response, PDP chief and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has appealed to the Centre and Indian Railways to arrange special cargo trains to ensure uninterrupted supply of food, medicines, and other essentials.
The highway, considered the lifeline of Kashmir, has remained blocked at several stretches in Ramban and Banihal after continuous rainfall triggered major landslides. Hundreds of trucks carrying vegetables, fuel, and medicines have been stranded for days, causing shortages and price hikes in the Valley.
Taking to social media, Mehbooba Mufti said that urgent intervention was required to prevent a humanitarian crisis. “With NH-44 damaged, essential commodities are stuck for days. I appeal to the Centre and the Railways to immediately arrange cargo trains to Kashmir so that people are not deprived of food, medicines, and basic necessities,” she stated.
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