Peshawar:
The government of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has announced a substantial increase in compensation packages for recent flood victims, promising rapid and transparent financial support to families who have lost dear beings, suffered injuries or suffering material damage.
Head Minister Ali Amin Gandapur in a video statement on Thursday said the provincial government had doubled compensation for RS1 million deaths to Rs2 million by victim.
Compensation for the injured has increased from 250,000 rupees to RS500,000. The owners of completely destroyed houses will now receive 1 million rupees instead of RS400,000, while partially damaged houses will be offset at RS300,000, compared to 100,000 rupees.
For the first time, traders whose companies have been destroyed will receive 500,000 rupees, while store owners whose establishments have been flooded will be paid at 100,000 rupees for cleaning expenses.
He also announced that compensation would also be provided for losses against crops, orchards and livestock, with details to be finalized by the rescue service. To facilitate these payments, the government has already released 6.5 billion rupees in the rescue service and will soon emit 5 billion rupees, which makes the total distribution of RS11.5 billion rupees.
Stressing the magnitude of destruction, Gandapur said that cloudbursts and torrential rains since August 15 have left 406 dead and 245 others injured in the province.
The hardest districts include Biner, Swat, Shangla, Bajaur, Manshra and Swabi. The floods and landslides destroyed 664 houses and damaged 2,431 others. The infrastructure losses were also immense, with 511 roads, 77 bridges and 2,123 stores affected.
The CM said the provincial government had responded immediately after receiving reports on the first Cloudburst in Bajaur on August 15.
The relevant services, the rescue teams and the district administrations were mobilized without delay. “The timely response from managers and rescuers has saved thousands of lives,” he added.
According to the CM, a total of 5,566 people were rescued during the operations carried out with the help of 176 vehicles and boats and more than 2,000 rescue staff.
Rescue activities started immediately after rescue efforts, 119,000 people provided cooked meals and 125 trucks carrying essential rescue products sent to the affected areas. He said that 136 roads and 65 bridges had already been restored, while 70 medical camps have been installed in regions struck by floods to provide health care.
Gandapur has shared the details of the financial aid distributed to date. Families of 350 deceased were paid a total of 654 million rupees. Compensation worth RS195 million was granted to 18 people injured, while the verification process for others is underway.
In addition, 4,432 beneficiaries received 15,000 rupees each under food coupons, or 665 million rupees. Payments of 280 million rupees were made to traders, while 790 million rupees were paid from affected households. Additional compensation of additional value of more than RS 2.3 billion will be distributed soon.
The CM pointed out that compensation will be provided transparent and without hassle via a digital payment system. For children who have lost parents in the floods, special accounts are opened by the sub-commissioners to guarantee appropriate payment payments.
