Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 17: Minister for PHE, Irrigation & Flood Control, Sham Lal Choudhary today directed officials of Agriculture Department to expedite relief distribution process for the beneficiaries who have lost their crops during flashfloods in 2014, under State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).
The Minister convened a meeting with senior officials to know about the status of relief distribution to the affected farmers, so that they don’t face any difficulty in getting their due. The Minister further asked the officers to submit a list of beneficiaries to his office, besides providing details of the amount disbursed in different villages of Suchetgarh.
He was informed that an amount of Rs 18 lakh has been disbursed among the affected till date and the remaining money would be distributed among genuine beneficiaries soon.
Later, the Minister convened a public grievance redressal camp at Suchetgarh in which villagers hailing from Bidipur, Rangpur, Badyal Qazian, Sangral, Chakrohi, Mottan, Satriyan, Dasore, Korotana, Gopad Basti, Badyal Brahmana and Hansu Chak participated.
The villagers apprised the Minister about the problems being faced by them related to power supply, water supply, road connectivity, telecom, education, sanitation and healthcare. Their main demands included upgradation of transformers, replacement of old cables, construction of lanes & drains, construction of boundary walls and simplification of formalities for cash relief compensation to PoK refugees.
After hearing their demands, the Minister said the State Government is working relentlessly for ensuring the overall development of the State and special attention is being given to the development of rural areas. He assured them that their genuine demands will be redressed in a phased manner.
Earlier, the Minister also chaired a meeting to review the status of Water Supply Schemes of district Kishtwar. Minister of State for Transport (Independent charge), Revenue, Public Works (Roads & Buildings), Rural Development & Panchayati Raj, Agriculture Production, YSS Sunil Kumar Sharma was also present in the meeting.
The Minister directed the officers of the department to complete the ongoing Water Supply Schemes on time, besides preparing DPRs for construction of new tube-wells in the district.
The Minister said the commissioning of new Water Supply Schemes will definitely help the department in further augmenting the potable water supply in the district.
Chief Engineer, PHE Susheel Aima, Chief Engineer I&FC Rajeev Gandotra and other senior officers of the department were present in the meeting.