Cyclone Arnab: Odisha seeks Rs 2,526 crore compensation; Rs 10,000 crore for permanent restoration

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has sought Rs 12,526 crore in central assistance, including Rs 2,526 crore towards preliminary damage compensation and Rs 10,000 crore under the mitigation head for permanent restoration and strengthening of infrastructure damaged by Cyclone Arnab and the subsequent floods, Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Rajesh Prabhakar Patil said on Thursday.

An eight-member Central Inter-Ministerial Team, which is on a visit to Odisha to assess damage caused by Cyclone Arnab and subsequent floods in various districts of the state, attended a preliminary assessment meeting organised by the SRC at the Lok Seva Bhavan here.

During their field visit, the Central team observed extensive damage to crops caused by the cyclone and subsequent floods. Various infrastructure facilities, including roads, power infrastructure, river embankments and canals under the Water Resources Department, have also suffered extensive damage.

The District Collectors informed the team that, given the large scale of destruction, a few more days will be required to complete the comprehensive assessment of the damage. The Central team advised the authorities to conduct door-to-door surveys to assess the losses.

Speaking to media persons after the debriefing meeting, SRC Patil said the preliminary damage assessment has been compiled into a memorandum and handed over to the central team.

The meeting was attended by the Chief Secretary and departmental secretaries, during which the central team presented its observations from visits to the affected districts and sought clarifications from various departments.

Patil said preliminary reports received from different departments indicated estimated damages of around Rs 2,526 crore. The assessment covers damage caused by the cyclone and associated flooding.

“We have sought Rs 2,526 crore towards damage compensation, while another Rs 10,000 crore has been demanded under the mitigation head. The latter is meant for the reconstruction and development of permanent infrastructure, including damaged irrigation and other infrastructure, as well as the construction of river embankments in Aska and other places where they are required. This is a preliminary demand. Once detailed reports are received from all the departments, a memorandum will be prepared and submitted. That will be the final memorandum, “ Patil said.

The SRC said three districts were primarily affected by the cyclone, with Ganjam being the worst-hit district. He added that essential services, including electricity, drinking water and mobile communication, have been restored. However, restoration of irrigation facilities and certain other infrastructure will take additional time.

Patil said the state government will submit a final memorandum to the Centre within 10-12 days after receiving detailed damage assessment reports from all departments.

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