Govt to pay, residents to rebuild homes

The J-K Government today decided to leave reconstruction in the hands of its residents, only paying Rs 1 lakh to every family that has lost ...

The J-K Government today decided to leave reconstruction in the hands of its residents, only paying Rs 1 lakh to every family that has lost a house. While Rs 40,000 would be given as first instalment towards reconstruction of completely destroyed houses in Tangdhar, Uri and Poonch, Rs 10,000 would be paid to owners of houses that have suffered minor damages.

The reconstruction programme was announced today after consultations with the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, the Disaster Management Cell of the Home Ministry, experts from Housing and Urban Development Corporation, National Building Corporation and the Indian Institute of Technology. Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and Union Urban Development Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad was also present.

The reconstruction is expected to cost Rs 500 crore, estimating the number of fully damaged houses over 32,000 and partially damaged houses around 72,000. While residents will take up the hands-on job of rebuilding, the Central agencies will provide the design and training.

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‘‘The government has decided to provide Rs 1 lakh for every owner whose house has been fully damaged,’’ Divisional Commissioner of Kashmir, BB Vyas told The Indian Express. ‘‘The remaining amount will be released in two instalments subsequently.’’ The government, however, is yet to decide on houses that were partially damaged. ‘‘The loss to these houses has to be assessed after which they will get the amount accordingly,’’ said a senior officer who participated in the meet. ‘‘The government is providing Rs 350 crore for fully damaged houses and will spend another Rs 150 crore for partially damaged houses.’’

‘‘The state government will start releasing part of the money to those whose houses have been destroyed by the quake as early as possible — it could even start tomorrow,’’ a senior Central government official, who was present at the meeting, said. ‘‘But it has been made quite clear that only 40 per cent of the fund would be released. We’ll have to inspect the foundation of the houses being reconstructed before the next instalment is released. Otherwise, no one can ensure that the people follow the safety norms and quake-resistant specifications given by us.’’

Vyas said the government had decided against reconstruction as winter was approaching. ‘‘The reconstruction has to start early so that people will not face difficulty during winter,’’ he said.

The Union Urban Development Ministry will construct 20 pre-fabricated community centres on a war footing in Tangdhar and Uri to accommodate around 6,000 people ‘‘so that if there is any unforeseen delay in reconstruction, the people will have some form of shelter in the winter’’. The victims, however, would simultaneously start rebuilding their houses for which cement, iron and timber would be made available.