
"Amit Shah has released Rs 2,006 cr for disaster relief, Rs 93,000 cr allocated under PMAY": Nadda visits flood-hit Mandi district in Himachal
Nadda visited the flood-affected areas of Mandi today and expressed solidarity with the victims.
Addressing the devastation caused by the floods, Nadda termed the tragedy 'distressing and unfortunate,' highlighting the severe losses incurred by the people.
'The tragedy was distressing and unfortunate. The people have suffered great losses, both human and animal. There has been a lot of damage here,' Nadda said during his visit.
He commended the efforts of BJP workers in providing aid through relief centres, stating, 'We are trying our best to provide relief through our relief centres... Our party workers are doing a good job at it.'
'Union Home Minister Amit Shah has released Rs 2006 crores for disaster relief in the state. Rs 93,000 crores have been given for the construction of houses as part of PMAY. Another instalment has been allotted as part of Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana to reconstruct the damaged roads... I want to assure the people of Himachal Pradesh that we cannot cover up for the losses suffered; the central government is committed and will give maximum remuneration,' the BJP President said.
Meanwhile, due to heavy rain incidents, Himachal Pradesh has claimed 85 lives so far, with 54 deaths directly linked to rain-related disasters and 31 others lost to road accidents, according to the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA).
In its cumulative loss report, the SDMA confirmed that natural calamities such as landslides, flash floods, cloudbursts, and drowning incidents have been responsible for the bulk of the fatalities. Mandi district remains the worst-hit, reporting 17 deaths from rain-related causes.
As per the SDMA, other severely affected districts include Kangra (11), Hamirpur (5), and Kullu, Chamba, Shimla, Sirmaur, Una, Bilaspur, and Kinnaur with lower but significant numbers. The SDMA has also recorded 129 injuries and 34 missing persons in connection with these weather-induced disasters.
Massive damage to crops, roads, bridges, and power infrastructure was reported, especially in Mandi, Kullu, Kangra, and Shimla. (ANI)
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)

Business Standard
17 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Anti-sacrilege bill will deter future desecration of scriptures: Punjab CM
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday said the Anti-sacrilege Bill will ensure that no such heinous crime takes place in the future by making provision of the sternest punishment against culprits. Mann stated this while participating in a debate on the 'Punjab Prevention of Offences Against Holy Scripture(s) Bill 2025' on the concluding day of the Special Session of the Punjab Assembly here. The House on Tuesday decided to refer the Bill, which was introduced on Monday, to a Select Committee of the Assembly for seeking views of all stakeholders. Mann said the Guru Granth Sahib is the living Guru, who is highly revered by one and all across the globe. He said the 'Guru Granth Sahib' is a lighthouse of peace and tranquility for the entire mankind, and the Punjab government is "fully alive" to the deep emotional hurt caused by the incidents of sacrilege against the holy 'granths' in the past. He said it is unfortunate that some forces had even gone to an extent of committing the most heinous sin against mankind through desecration of the 'Guru Granth Sahib', a holy book revered by the Sikh community. Mann said the 'Guru Granth Sahib' is an eternal Guru for mankind and no one could ever tolerate the dastardly act of sacrilege. Likewise, he said the 'Bhagavad Gita', 'Quran', 'Bible' and other 'granths' are also respected by humanity for showing a way of life to them. Mann said every devout Sikh is deeply connected with the 'Shabad Guru' - in the form of the 'Guru Granth Sahib' and Gurmukhi, which means originating from the mouth of Guru. Mann said the sacrilege incidents had bruised the psyche of every Punjabi in general and every Sikh in particular. In the absence of harsh punishment against this "unpardonable crime", there was no end to these incidents due to which the Bill was necessitated, he said. According to the Bill, any person found guilty of sacrilege may face imprisonment ranging from 10 years to life. The guilty shall also be liable to pay a fine of Rs 5 lakh, which may extend up to Rs 10 lakh. Those attempting to commit the offence may be sentenced to three to five years and shall also be liable to pay a fine which may extend up to Rs 3 lakh, as per the Bill. Individuals found abetting the crime will be punished in accordance with the offence committed. Under the Bill, offence means any sacrilege, damage, destruction, defacing, disfiguring, de-colouring, de-filling, decomposing, burning, breaking or tearing of any holy scripture or part thereof.
&w=3840&q=100)

Business Standard
22 minutes ago
- Business Standard
'India's Deng Xiaoping': Andhra Pradesh CM Naidu on Rao's reforms
Describing former Prime Minister (PM) P V Narasimha Rao as 'India's Deng Xiaoping', Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister (CM) N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday said the economic reforms unveiled by the Rao-led minority government in 1991 were the reason India's coalition governments delivered better results than those with clear majorities. The Andhra CM is on a two-day visit to the national capital, where he is scheduled to meet PM Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and others. He met Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday. In his meetings with the PM and Union ministers, Naidu will seek the Centre's support for projects in his state, release of pending funds, the Polavaram–Banakacherla river-linking project, and issues related to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) sources said. On Tuesday evening, Naidu delivered a lecture on 'The Life and Legacy of P V Narasimha Rao' at the Prime Ministers Museum and Library (PMML) in the national capital. His lecture was the sixth in the PMML-organised Prime Ministers Lecture Series. He described Rao as a 'true Telugu bidda', or Telugu son of the soil, who 'reshaped the destiny' of India, and said the Telugu community is proud of his contributions. Rao, who passed away in December 2004, was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna in 2024. Referring to the recent controversy over some states accusing the Centre of imposing Hindi, Naidu said Rao had mastered 17 languages and serves as an inspiration in the current context. The Andhra CM said Rao, despite leading a minority government, accomplished the near-impossible task of forging consensus on economic reforms among socialists, communists, and capitalists alike. Naidu credited Rao's prime ministerial tenure, and subsequently that of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, for India's first-mover advantage in the information technology sector and for building world-class infrastructure, especially in roads and telecommunications. Naidu said that in 1978, when Deng launched China's economic reforms, both India and China were $140 billion economies, while the US economy was 15x larger at $2.3 trillion. Now, the US economy is only 1.5x bigger than China's, and more than 7x bigger than India's. 'They (China) are catching up (with the US). We are behind,' Naidu said, stressing that the journey from being the world's fourth- or third-largest economy to one of the top two will be much more challenging. Naidu said 2014 was a turning point in India's growth story, with the country getting Modi as PM, who has 'ushered in a new era of bold and decisive leadership'. He said the goal is not just to grow fast, but to grow fairly, where every citizen, every region, and every sector shares the fruit of progress. Citing World Bank data, he said India is among the top four most income-equal countries but stressed that the country still needs to become more equitable. He urged the top 10 per cent of India's wealthy to uplift the bottom 20 per cent, appealing to them to follow tech billionaire Bill Gates' example and 'give back to society'. On his vision for Andhra, Naidu spoke about his government's Quantum Valley initiative in Amaravati. He urged youth to join politics and said the TDP's parliamentary party is the youngest in the Lok Sabha. He also noted that TDP's representative in the Union Cabinet, Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu, is the youngest minister at the Centre. During his visit to Delhi, Naidu and Telangana CM A Revanth Reddy are also scheduled to attend a meeting on water issues being facilitated by the Centre on Wednesday. The Telangana government is expected to press the Centre to grant approvals and funds for its long-pending projects. It had earlier conveyed its objection to the Centre regarding Andhra's Banakacherla river-linking project, saying that it hurts Telangana's interests.


Time of India
25 minutes ago
- Time of India
BJP ally TDP seeks clarity on SIR, says exercise shouldn't link to citizenship or burden voters
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel New Delhi: Taking a contrarian view on the Special Intensive Revision ( SIR ) of electoral roll , key NDA ally Telugu Desam Party ( TDP ) said the purpose of the exercise should be clearly defined and delinked from citizenship verification , wrapped up at least six months before elections and the burden of proof should not be on the a four-page representation submitted to the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday, TDP sought clarity on the SIR's purpose -- a move seen as a guarded way of questioning the on-going exercise in openly criticising SIR, TDP has made four submissions which are against the current approach of ECI. TDP, whose 16 MPs provide crucial support to BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, has sought clarity on the "scope of SIR" and wants it to be completely delinked from the citizenship question. "The purpose of SIR must be clearly defined and limited to electoral roll correction and inclusion. It should be explicitly communicated that the exercise is not related to citizenship verification, and any field instructions must reflect this distinction," reads the TDP representation. It said adequate time should be given for such an exercise and it should take place "ideally not within six months of any major election". This is contrary to what is underway in Bihar, where a new assembly will be in place by November-end and SIR is underway with elections just three months documentation, TDP stated, "Voters who are already enrolled in the most recent certified electoral roll should not be required to re-establish their eligibility unless specific and verifiable reasons are recorded." TDP has sought to make a distinction between intensive roll revision and electoral roll revision and suggested that the last electoral roll revision be made the base year. This means that for Bihar it should be the electoral roll revision of January 2025 which should be the base year, not 2003. It cited a Supreme Court judgement in Lal Babu Hussein vs Electoral Registration Officer to say "prior inclusion created a presumption of validity and any deletion must be preceded by a valid inquiry."In the Bihar SIR, the ECI sought proof and asked voters to fill a form to ensure inclusion. However, TDP representation said: "The burden of proof lies with ERO or objector, not the voter, especially when the name exists on the official roll".