Orissa cyclone 8212; Toll reaches 95, CM seeks Rs 50 cr from Centre

Briefing newsmen here on Thursday, Special Relief Commissioner SRC DN Padhi said that the State Government has not taken into account the death of five persons from Keonjhar and Dhenkanal districts pending investigation. He, however, could not give the break up of the five deaths.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Giridhar Gamang and Revenue Minister Jagannath Patnaik have demanded an ad-hoc assistance of Rs 50 crore from the Centre.

In a letter to the Prime Minister AB Vajpayee, the Chief Minister has sought for an interim assistance of Rs 50 crore from the National Fund for Calamity Relief NFCR. The State would submit a memorandum quantifying the extent of damage and quantum of assistance necessary within a week, he said.

In a separate letter to the Union Minister of State, S Rao, the Revenue Minister has stated that the calamity has affected over 300 villages of Ganjam district covering five lakh population. The State has a balance of only Rs 25 crore in the calamity relief fund which is woefully inadequate to meet the situation.

The Revenue Minister who took stock of the situation at a review meeting here attended by chief secretary and other senior officials has directed respective head of the departments to make a quick assessment and quantify the damages of public properties in order to submit a memorandum to the Centre.

The SRC said rescue and relief operations have been stepped up in the cyclone-affected areas. Two choppers have been air-dropping food packets in areas not accessible through roads.

Besides key installations, power supply has been restored to 40 per cent of areas in Berhampur town and Chhatrapur, the district headquarters of Ganjam, by Thursday afternoon. Drinking water supply has also been restored to 40 per cent areas of Berhampur town. Over 500 tube wells have been made functional in Berhampur town.

He said 15 water tankers are supplying drinking water and three more tankers would be sent on Friday. Seven rig machines have been pressed into service to dig as many tube wells as necessary in rural areas.

Padhi said the State Government has cleared the outstanding dues of the Food Corporation of India FCI which had agreed to supply food grains. FCI had stopped releasing food grains to the State on account of huge outstanding dues.

Meanwhile, the Government has dispatched 500 quintals of flattened rice, 50,000 rolls of polythene sheets, 6000 dhotis and sarees and biscuits to the cyclone-affected people.

The civil supplies department has opened seven mobile shops in Berhampur town to supply essentials to the people. The forest department has opened six depots for supplying firewood and house building materials.

About 15,000 litres of petrol and diesel and another 15,000 litres of kerosene have already reached the district.

Ten mobile health units have been sent to rural areas to disinfect wells, ponds and other drinking water sources. The director of health services is touring the affected areas to monitor the health and sanitation.

Padhi said that six platoons of additional police forces have been mobilised to Ganjam to maintain law and order. A section of the Territorial Army has been kept ready. However, the Government has not required their service so far.

Stating that about one lakh houses have been damaged in Ganjam district alone, Padhi said the State would demand funds for an equal number of houses under the Indira Awas Yojana.