Nitish Kumar asks for more relief from Centre

Patna, Sep 2 : Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on today asked for more central assistance for providing relief and rescue operations to the victims of devastating flood in the state.

Kumar, who met Union Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrashekhar and his team, said the state government has formed a high level team under Development Commissioner to undertake rehabilitation of people, displaced by ravaging Koshi river which breached embankment at Kushaha in Nepal on August 18.

The Chief Minister sought more central assistance for flood-affected people and told the members that "protection" work on the breached side of Kosi embankment, which remained cut off since August 18 would be completed by September 6.

However, the plugging of the breached area and bringing the river back to its original course would take sometime as it is a long term project, Kumar told the visiting team.

Besides the Cabinet Secretary, Defence Secretary Vijay Singh, Home Secretary (border management) Janrail Singh, Water Resources Development Secretary U N Panjiyar, National Disaster Management Authority Secretary, H S Brahma, Secretary-Security (Cabinet Secretariat) K C Verma, Joint Secretary (Home) Vimal Juneka and other officials were present at the meeting.

The team members discussed how the Centre could help the state in overcoming the national calamity.

Kumar told the Cabinet Secretary that Centre should prepare a detailed list of relief materials for which the state government would pay so that no controversy could crop up pertaining to payment during audit.

He asked the Cabinet Secretary to avoid delay in releasing food grains from FCI go-downs and added that state might require more than 1.25 metric tonnes of food grains to cater to the flood victims.

Kumar demanded 50 mobile ambulances and life saving drugs as relief centres opened by the state would work for next four to six months.

He said the Centre should provide ten portable bailey bridges to connect several roads that have been snapped with National Highways.

The Cabinet Secretary told the Chief Minister that he would consider the state government's demands seriously and reply within a fortnight after meeting secretaries of concerned departments.

ANI