Today in Politics: Central team in Sikkim to assess flood damage; Adityanath in Kedarnath

Parshottam Rupala continues his Sagar Parikrama tour of Tamil Nadu; Siddaramaiah to leave for CWC meeting slated for Monday in Delhi

sikkim flash flood, north sikkim, search and rescue in sikkim, sikkim flash flood news, indian express

Search and rescue operation underway following flash floods in North Sikkim, Saturday (PTI)

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With more than 50 people feared dead and many still missing in the flash floods in Sikkim, an inter-ministerial central team is scheduled to visit the state on Sunday to assess the widespread devastation. Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs Ajay Kumar Mishra arrived in Gangtok Saturday for a two-day visit to the Himalayan state.

Assuring the Sikkim administration of all necessary central support, Mishra met state chief secretary V B Pathak and senior officials from the government, army and other organisations, including those of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Border Roads Organisation (BRO), National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDC) and NHPC.

Mishra said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah are in constant touch with Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang for rescue and relief work being carried out by the army and the state administration. An inter-ministerial team, comprising senior officers of five central ministries — agriculture, road transport & highways, water resources, energy and finance — will visit from Sunday to assess the damage caused by the flash floods, he said.

The Centre has approved the release of Rs 44.8 crore as an advance amount from its share of the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) to Sikkim to provide relief to flash floods-affected people.

With the poll season heating up, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is set to leave Bengaluru on Sunday night for Delhi to attend a Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, scheduled for Monday, which is likely to discuss the party’s strategy for the upcoming elections. During the visit, he is likely to meet some Union ministers to discuss various state projects as well. His return to Bengaluru has been kept “open”.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who is on a three-day visit to Uttarakhand, postponed his Kedarnath visit to Sunday due to inclement weather, reaching Badrinath instead on Saturday. He will perform a “jalabhishek” at Kedarnath Sunday before returning to Lucknow.

The three-day Sagar Parikrama Yatra Phase IX, which Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Parshottam Rupala inaugurated Saturday by visiting Tamil Nadu’s coastal areas of Pudukottai, Thanjavur and Nagapattinam, will continue on Sunday. The programme is meant to disseminate information on fisheries-related schemes of the Government of India, highlighting best practices, promoting responsible fisheries and demonstrating solidarity with fisherfolk and other stakeholders.

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As part of the programme, the minister interacted with several fishermen and distributed Kisan Credit Cards to 10 beneficiaries Saturday. He also inspected the fish landing centre and discussed problems faced by the fishermen. He urged the stakeholders to utilise the benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY). Later, he inaugurated a branch of the Fish Farmer and Fish Producer Co-operative Society Limited at Manamelkudi.

(With PTI inputs)