Shah sets up teams to assess damage in 4 rain-hit states | India News

NEW DELHI: Union home minister Amit Shah has constituted inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) each for Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab and J&K to assess damage caused by heavy rainfall, floods, flash floods, cloudbursts and landslides. These teams would make on-the-spot assessment of the situation and relief works carried out by state govt, home ministry said on Sunday.The teams will visit the flood/landslide-affected districts of Uttarakhand, Punjab and J&K early next week. These have been severely affected by heavy to extremely heavy rainfall and incidents of flash flood, cloudburst and landslides during the current monsoon season, it said. An IMCT and a multi-sectoral team have already visited Himachal Pradesh and will go there again for further assessment.The teams are led by a senior officer of the level of joint secretary in MHA/NDMA and will have senior officers from the ministries or departments of expenditure, agriculture and farmers welfare, Jal Shakti, power, road transport and highways, and rural development.“MHA is in touch with senior officers of these states/UT, and has extended all necessary logistic assistance by deployment of requisite number of teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and Army and Air Force helicopters, who are helping them in search and rescue and restoration of essential services,” the ministry said.During 2025-26, Centre has released Rs 10,500 crore to 24 states in State Disaster Response Fund, so as to enable disaster-affected states to provide relief assistance to people immediately, Rs 1,990 crore from National Disaster Response Fund to 12 states, Rs 3,275 crore from State Disaster Mitigation Fund to 20 states, and Rs 372 crore from National Disaster Mitigation Fund to nine states.