Relief work to continue for 7 more days

BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has asked the collectors of the flood-affected districts to start restoration and reconstruction work immediately and complete it within 45 days. He also asked the collectors to properly document the restoration and damage assessment work.With lakhs of people continuing to reel under the impact of devastating floods, the State Government said the relief work will continue for another seven days in villages still marooned.The Chief Minister discussed the situation with the collectors of 19 flood-affected districts through video conference here on Sunday. Naveen asked the collectors to start labour-intensive work in the  villages as the poor have been affected in the recent flood.Work should be given to the poor under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) and wages paid to them without delay, Naveen said. He also directed the officials to provide relief to very poor families through the gratuitous relief (GR) card.As a large number of people have lost their belongings due to the flood, the Chief Minister directed the collectors to provide relief to them as per the provisions of the Orissa Relief Code within the stipulated period. Complete transparency and impartiality should be maintained in the distribution of relief to the affected people, he added.The district collectors, additional district magistrates and sub-collectors should resolve disputes regarding distribution of relief materials, he said. Damage assessment and restoration work should continue simultaneously. Besides, all assessment work should be completed within the scheduled time and compensation paid to the affected people by October 5, Naveen said.He directed the collectors to appoint retired revenue inspectors and amins on contract basis for a month to speed up damage assessment work. Similarly, crop loss due to sandcasting should be completed within September 25 and compensation paid to the affected families through account payee cheque.Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Surjya Narayan Patro, Chief Secretary Bijay Kumar Patnaik and secretaries of different departments were present.