A day after TN Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami announced Rs 1000 crore as relief money towards the damages caused by Cyclone Gaja, a government order was issued on Tuesday with more details on how the money would be spent.
According to the order, Rs 350 crore has been set aside to award compensation for the farmers who have lost their crops to the gale winds of cyclone Gaja. Rs 205.87 crore has been allocated to provide relief to people who have suffered loss of human lives, cattle and other possessions like clothes and cooking vessels, and Rs 100 crore will be given to the people with damages to their houses due to the cyclone. While Rs 41.63 crore has been allocated to the fisheries department to be given for loss of boats of fishermen in the affected districts, Rs 102.50 crore has been set aside for infrastructure works to be carried out in the districts including roads and waterways. The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) has been allocated Rs 200 crore to carry out the necessary work required to restore electricity in the regions hit by the cyclone.
Apart from this, the TN CM had also appealed to the general public to contribute to the Chief Minister’s Public Relief Fund (CMPRF). He has also said that the state government will press for funds from the National Disaster Relief Fund.
Other than the government, many other political parties, individuals and companies have pitched in resources to bring the affected regions back to normal. DMK’s Charitable Trust contributed Rs 1 crore towards relief works and Vijayakanth’s DMDK announced Rs 1 crore for cyclone-affected districts. Film production company Lyca Productions announced Rs 1.01 crore towards cyclone relief operations in the affected areas. Superstar Rajinikanth announced Rs 50 lakh worth of relief materials to the affected areas through his fan clubs. Actors Sivakumar, Suriya, Karthi and their families have together announced Rs 50 lakh. Actors Vikram and Vijay Sethupathi have announced Rs 25 lakh each to be given to the people affected by cyclone Gaja. Actor Siva Karthikeyan announced Rs 10 lakh as donation and relief materials worth Rs 10 lakh to be given to the people in the cyclone-hit regions. Movie director Shankar also announced Rs 10 lakh towards cyclone relief works. Reports have also emerged that actor Vijay has announced up to Rs 4.5 lakh per affected district through his fan clubs.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also announced relief materials including drinking water, tarpaulins, candles, drief food items and new clothes to the people of Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam districts. In his tweet, he stated that the distribution of the materials will be coordinated by the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA).
Chief of TVS Motor Company Venu Srinivasan donated Rs 2 crore towards cyclone relief. Sakthi Masala Group as well as the City Union Bank each gave Rs 1 crore to the CMPRF. Nanguneri MLA and Head of Vasanth & Co H Vasanthakumar donated Rs 25 lakh to the CMRPF and the Head of the MGR group of institutions, Chennai AC Shanmugam donated Rs 20 lakh towards the fund.
Cyclone Gaja, which hit the TN coast on November 16, effected extensive damage in some coastal districts, Cauvery delta districts and some interior districts. According to the latest official figures, 46 people have lost their lives in Cyclone Gaja and more than 2.5 lakh people have been displaced from their houses. 270 cattle, 1181 goats and around 15000 birds have also been lost due to the cyclone. Around 88102 hectares of agriculture lands have been affected by the gale winds. 86702 electric poles, 841 transformers, 201 electricity substations and 4844 fishing boats have been destroyed in the cyclone.