Daily Times

Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Murtaza Javed Abbassi on Monday apprised the National Assembly that the incumbent government had provided Rs 70-74 billion emergency relief to the flood victims from its own resources under Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP).

Replying to various supplementary questions during the Question Hour, he said compensation checques to the legal heirs of 115 flood victims who lost their lives in Punjab had already been given while only three were remaining due to some clearance issues by respective deputy commissioners of the districts.

He said that the government had announced Rs 1 million to the deceased person, Rs 500,000 and Rs 250,000 for fully destroyed and partial destroyed houses in the flood. He said the government had issued funds to National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The NDMA had received data of the houses destroyed in recent floods from the three provinces, while data from two federating units was still awaited, he added. The fundamental responsibility to manage the disasters with all allied activities rested with respective Provincial and Districts Departments, while NDMA acted as National backup support at Federal level, he said. The minister said Pakistan’s Disaster Management System was structured in a three-tier devolved system with the primary onus at Provincial and District level. NDMA effectively coordinated the disaster related activities with the provincial government by extending due help under NDMA Act on the direction of the Prime Minister and the Federal Government. He said the rates for loss of Agriculture land and Livestock had also been revised upwards.