Published On:Saturday, 18 October 2014
‘Reconstruction’ memorandum submitted
PDP MPs call on Prime Minister
Srinagar: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Friday urged the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to include Srinagar in the group of ‘Smart Cities’ announced in this year’s union budget with an allocation of Rs 7000 crore in the current year.
“If Srinagar is included in the Smart Cities project, for which the money has already been provided in the budget, the process of rebuilding can start instantaneously and along futuristic lines”, PDP said in a memorandum submitted to the Prime Minister in New Delhi on Friday.
The PDP delegation which called on the Prime Minister was led by the party chief Mehbooba Mufti and included two other party MPs, Muzafar Hussain Baigh and Tariq Hameed Qara. Interestingly this was first time after Modi became the Prime Minister, some six months back, that the PDP officially had a meeting with Narendra Modi.
Friday’s meeting was held in the backdrop of recent devastating floods with PDP seeking liberal central funding for rebuilding Kashmir and make up for the heavy losses that Kashmir has incurred.
PDP MPs met the PM with a “set of practical reconstruction initiatives” for which money has already been provided for in the union budget. This will ensure that the reconstruction works can start at the earliest instead of being plans on paper.
A detailed memorandum submitted by the PDP, suggested that some to the existing national housing schemes be modified and extended to rural areas to resolve the housing crisis. Recommending a pragmatic approach, the memorandum suggests that financial aid for temporary shelters must be disbursed immediately in view of the fast approaching windows.
For those people, trade and business establishments which have no insurance the memorandum recommends that the CRF and DRF be used to be proved deemed insurance.
In addition to flood affected areas, the memorandum also calls for a flood impacted category.
The core idea of the memorandum submitted by PDP was that reconstruction in J&K should be to that the disaster provides an opportunity to build back better all the destroyed assets and leap frog into the 21st century.
The memorandum detailed out the framework within which reconstruction work must be carried out. Suggesting that the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) be the centerpiece for drawing upon international aid, the memorandum suggested that Track-III operations of the GFDRR-- the standby recovery financing facility to channel international assistance for disaster recovery --- must be pursued.
In addition to the Technical Assistance Fund, resources must be availed from the Callable Fund which provide speedy access to financial resources for disaster recovery. This could then be leveraged for large resources from donor countries and multi-lateral financial institutions for long term post disaster recovery and reconstruct, the memorandum said.
PDP said that the purpose of this partnership, which should be a Joint Mission, must be three-fold:
First, list out the short-term government interventions required to initiate recovery,
Second, arrive at the financial requirements needed to achieve overall post-disaster recovery, reconstruction and disaster risk reduction.
And third, draw out a road map for J&K for capacity building in disaster risk management and in post disaster reconstruction.
The memorandum said that in terms of geographical areas, there was a need not only to define “flood affected” areas, but also “flood impacted” areas. While only a few districts have been affected by floods, most others have been impacted by the ravaging floods, it said.
As regards losses, the memorandum said both public assets and private assets have been damaged and/or lost. For public assets, the resources had to come from the Union. This can be worked upon as such, a “Public Infrastructure Reconstruction Plan”. As regards private assets not only do the personal assets (houses, cars etc) and business assets (factories, shops etc) the income loss has to be compensated.
For the uninsured, PDP suggested, the damage and loss information must be done as “self-assessment” ratified by the trade and industry associations.
In addition to these, the memorandum said the liabilities of households and commercial enterprise – principally repayment and interest on the bank loans and taxation to government -- must be assessed and addressed separately.
It said that financial needs for recovery and reconstruction must be done following a sector by sector damage and loss assessment, which itemizes distribution and priority setting based on sectors of the economy, and different population groupings in the affected area.
PDP suggested that the focus of the post-flood rehabilitation program in J&K should be on restoration of livelihoods and rebuilding of the economy.
“The floods have not only destroyed assets but severely impaired the process of income generation and it would take the state economy nearly a decade to reach the pre-flood levels of state and personal disposable income”, the memorandum said.
The party suggested that recovery and rehabilitation in J&K must focus on asset loss in the different sectors, including housing & public buildings, roads and bridges, irrigation, energy and environment, Besides, the PDP said that the focus had also to be on the income loss and liability commitments in, horticulture, handicrafts, trade and tourism
According the memorandum, even as the State Government had after long delay submitted Rs 44000 crore relief and rehabilitation plan to the Government of India, it would take a long time to get these funds and benefits to fructify on the ground.
Therefore, the PDP said, centre shall have to take some practical and urgent measures in the above listed sectors to address the issues of immediate concern.
In this connection, the memorandum demanded inclusion of Srinagar in the Smart Cities announced in this year’s Union budget with an allocation of Rs 7000 crore in the current year. If Srinagar is included in the Smart Cities project, for which the money has already been provided in the budget, the process of rebuilding can start instantaneously and along futuristic lines.
It also said that as the union budget has for the current year has allocated Rs 2,000 crore for urban renewal and for making cities livable with better infrastructure, there could be no city except Srinagar that can lay a greater claim on the project which needs to be made livable after undergoing massive destruction during the September floods.
PDP also demanded that Srinagar should be also included HRIDAY (National Heritage and City Development and Augmentation Yojna) for conserving the heritage character of the city impaired by the floods.
The memorandum urged the PM that the Calamity Relief Fund provide by the Finance Commission and recurring corpus of the state’s Disaster relief fund, should be treated as State’s funding support for the uninsured which is based on self-assessment and ratified by the local trade body or the bazaar committee. “As such, these funds should provide default insurance across the States for small traders and businesses uninsured assets”, it said.
The memorandum said that in view of the fast approaching winter and that no construction was possible during that time, there was a need to provide financial assistance for construction of temporary shelter sheds. This would help the flood victims survive the winter and they can start rebuilding their dwellings in April, it added.
Referring to the role of banks and other financial institutions, the memorandum said that the banks must be instructed to strictly implement the guidelines for relief measures in areas affected by natural calamity as outlined RBI in its master circular.
“The financial assistance required by borrowers in the event of natural calamity must include uncollateralized fresh consumption loans, fresh loans for resumption of normal business and restructuring of the existing loans” the memorandum said adding that special attention must be given to workout relief program for Kissan Credit Card and Artisan Credit Card holders.
The memorandum urged the PM that a special reconstruction group under his direct supervision should be constituted with economists, hydrologists, flood control engineers, urban and rural development specialists and health managers on it.
