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The Union government has not spent even half of the funds under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), meant for meeting expenses for emergency response related to disasters. More than 53% of funds, which would supplement the State Disaster Response Funds, remains unutilised, as per a report of Comptroller and Auditor General of India based on the accounts of Union government in 2024-25, tabled at the Parliament the other day.
Of the total Rs 11,474 crore sanctioned under NDRF as assistance to the state for calamities of severe nature, only Rs 5356 crore was transferred to the states. The remaining Rs 6117.97 crore is listed as ‘savings’ in the CAG report to indicate that it was unspent. This comes at a time when several states, including Kerala and Assam, are alleging that the Union government ignored its demand for more NRDF funds during devastating natural calamities.
CAG has noted this glaring disparity in the head ‘Transfers to state’, which also include assistance to state from National Disaster Mitigation Funds (NDMF) and special assistance. Nearly 75 % of funds under NDMF and over 83 % of special assistance to states were not transferred. The sanction provision for special assistance was Rs 20,000 crore, of which only Rs 3350 was spent. Under NDMF to states, only 719.72 crore was transferred from the sanctioned amount of Rs 2868 crore.
In addition to these, the Union government has a grant worth Rs 100 crore which can be transferred to states as ‘Loans as advance assistance for relief on account of natural calamities’. The government has not utilised a single penny from this account.
While NDRF is used towards meeting the expenses for emergency response, relief and rehabilitation, the NDMF is for implementing schemes aimed at reducing the risk or impact of a disaster.
The CAG has noted that there has been persistent savings under ‘Transfers to states’ under various schemes in the financial years, 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25. The under utilised amounts of these periods were respectively Rs 67,882 crore, Rs 46,012.89 crore and Rs 36,219 crore. “Persistent savings were registered despite being regularly pointed out in our Audit Reports and the advisory issued by MoF (Ministry of Finance) on realistic budgeting on the directions of the Public Accounts Committee,” the CAG report said.
As per the guidelines, natural calamities such as cyclones, droughts, earthquakes, fires, floods, tsunamis, hailstorms, landslides, avalanches, cloudbursts, pest attacks, cold waves and frost that are considered to be of severe nature by the Union Government, and which require expenditure by a state government beyond the balance available in its State Disaster Response Fund, qualify for immediate relief assistance from the NDRF.
As per national policy on disaster management, the state governments are primarily responsible for providing necessary relief measures in the wake of notified calamities using SDRF. If they need additional assistance from the NDRF, the concerned state must submit a memorandum. A Central team is then deputed to conduct an on-the-spot assessment and submit a report on the extent of assistance required. Based on the team's recommendations, a High-Level Committee, comprising the Union Ministers of Home Affairs, Finance and other relevant ministries, approves the quantum of assistance to be released from the NDRF.
Recently, Congress MP from Assam Gaurav Gogoi had stated that the state received only 2.4% of the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) assistance it requested during the floods.
In 2023, Kerala had sought Rs 2221 crore assistance from the Union government under NDRF for rehabilitation after the Wayanad landslide. However, more than a year later, the Union approved Rs 260.56 crore. After releasing a first installment of Rs 76.16 crore, the state and centre got into a tussle over release of further amounts. The Kerala High Court, which intervened in the dispute, then asked the state to release the utility certificate for clarity on the amount utilised. It also reminded the Union government to observe the principles of co-operative federalism.
In 2024, a drought-hit Karnataka had moved the Supreme Court seeking release of NDRF assistance after Centre released Rs 3499 crore on its request for Rs 18000 crore. Similarly, Tamil Nadu had raised a claim of Rs 37,907.21 crores on destruction caused by cyclonic storm Michaung in 2023 for which the Union Government sanctioned only Rs. 276 crore.
