Maharashtra government to pay double the aid offered by NDRF to flood-affected farmers in state

In the first meeting of the 18 Cabinet ministers sworn in Tuesday, the government on Wednesday announced that it will pay double the compensation offered by the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to farmers affected by flood.

While announcing this to mediapersons after the meeting, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis did not take any question on distribution of portfolios.

In all, 18 ministers – nine each from BJP and the Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena — were sworn in on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the ministers attended the first meeting of the extended Cabinet without being allocated portfolios.

Shinde said that as per NDRF norms, an aid of Rs 6,800 per hectare is paid to affected farmers. “The state government has decided to double it. At the same time, the limit of two hectare has been increased to three hectare,” he added.