 Early Times Report
New Delhi, Mar 13: The Centre has approved Rs 330.34 crore as additional financial assistance to Jammu and Kashmir from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to support relief measures for natural disasters during 2025, the Union Home Ministry said on Friday.
The assistance was cleared by a high-level committee chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
According to an official statement, the funds have been sanctioned for areas affected by floods, flash floods, cloudbursts, landslides and cyclonic storm ‘Montha’ during 2025.
The committee approved a total of Rs 1,912.99 crore as additional central assistance for six states and Union territories. Of this, Rs 330.34 crore has been allocated to Jammu and Kashmir.
Other states receiving assistance include Andhra Pradesh (Rs 341.48 crore), Chhattisgarh (Rs 15.70 crore), Gujarat (Rs 778.67 crore), Himachal Pradesh (Rs 288.39 crore) and Nagaland (Rs 158.41 crore).
The assistance will be provided from the National Disaster Response Fund and will be subject to adjustment of 50 per cent of the opening balance available in the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) for the year, the ministry said.
The Union government said the additional assistance is over and above the funds already released to states under the SDRF.
The ministry said that during the financial year 2025–26, the Centre has released Rs 20,735.20 crore to 28 states under the SDRF and Rs 3,628.18 crore to 21 states from the NDRF.
It added that Rs 5,373.20 crore has also been released to 23 states from the State Disaster Mitigation Fund and Rs 1,189.56 crore to 21 states from the National Disaster Mitigation Fund.
The government said it continues to support states and Union territories affected by natural disasters and provide necessary assistance for relief and rehabilitation measures.
Notably, J&K witnessed a series of severe weather-related disasters in 2025, resulting in significant loss of life and widespread damage across several districts.
According to official data shared with the Ministry of Home Affairs, about 199 people were killed during the year due to incidents such as flash floods, cloudbursts, landslides and heavy rainfall triggered by intense monsoon activity.
The disasters also led to the death of nearly 11,700 livestock, while more than 8,400 houses were damaged across the Union Territory. Agricultural losses were also substantial, with around 77,915 hectares of crop land affected.
The Jammu division recorded the worst damage, particularly during August when multiple extreme weather events struck the region.
On August 14, a cloudburst in Chashoti area of Kishtwar district triggered flash floods and landslides that killed at least 68 people, including pilgrims travelling along the Machail Mata Yatra route. Several others were injured and some were reported missing following the incident.
Later in the month, on August 26, heavy rainfall triggered landslides along the route to the Vaishno Devi shrine, leaving at least 34 people dead.
The same spell of rainfall also caused flooding in parts of Jammu city, where rising water levels in the Tawi river inundated several residential areas and damaged public infrastructure.
Rescue and relief operations were carried out by local authorities with the assistance of the Indian Army and teams from the National Disaster Response Force.
Officials have linked the frequency and intensity of such events to erratic weather patterns in the Himalayan region, raising concerns about disaster preparedness and early warning systems in vulnerable mountain areas. |
