There is a tide in the affairs of men, which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune, says Shakespeare. That is what exactly happened in the Fani aftermath that has further added to the popularity of Odisha’s 5th-time Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The man who understood the CM’s mind and flew like wind in the works of restoration and reconstruction post Fani is Special Relief Commissioner Bishnupda Sethi. This time too, the OSDMA under his umbrage emerged triumphant having chalked out programmes after chasing “The way of an eagle in the air, the way of a serpent upon a rock, the way of a ship in the midst of the sea…..”. An excellent technocrat by education and an administrator by choice, Sethi’s engineering prowess perfectly matches with his finesse to provide the needed leadership in the realm of disaster management. Under his stewardship through grassroots-level capacity building, decentralised decision making, effective use of technology and building institutions responsive to disasters, Odisha has emerged as a pioneering State and earned worldwide recognition in handling multiple disasters. The captain and the crew of OSDMA have earned laurels for the State from the Prime Minister Modi himself. In an interview to The Pioneer, Sethi spoke to Sugyan Choudhury.
What are your plans for reconstruction and rehabilitation for the Fani victims?
After providing immediate relief for sustenance, the Government has initiated action to support the affected families to restore their livelihoods. Families which have sustained loss in the sectors of agriculture, horticulture, animal resources, fisheries, handlooms and handicrafts, etc., will be assisted as per SDRF/NDRF norms. Besides, the Government has decided to implement special packages for livelihood support in different sectors. Financial supports to WSHGs and other groups are also included. Special assistance will be provided to affected street vendors in 11 Urban Local Bodies, coconut farmers and poultry farm owners for their immediate livelihood restoration. Plantation support will be given to coconut farmers. Land cess and school and examination fees of students have been waived. The family members of those who lost their lives due to the Fani will get Rs 4 lakh from the State Disaster Response Fund and Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. Those who sustained grievous injuries will also be compensated as per norms. The families, whose houses have been damaged, were provided polythene sheets as instant relief. They will further be provided house building assistance of Rs 95,100 for fully/ severely damaged or destroyed houses. The houses completely damaged will be reconstructed under housing schemes. Damaged schools, electrical and other critical infrastructures are to be restored prior to the monsoon.
How far have you been able to bridge the communication void?
Due to severe damage to the telecommunication and electrical infrastructures, all mobile and internet services were disrupted. During that period, the emergency communication between the State and severely affected districts and other units was established through satellite phones, HAM radio and VHFs. Telecommunication and internet services have meanwhile been restored in the district headquarters.
How long is required to restore normalcy in electricity?
Within 48 hours of the cyclone landfall, all NHs, major roads were cleared. Rural roads were restored in 72 hours. As on May 24, electricity supply was restored to 22,33,009 out of 25,01,131 affected consumers. 100% electricity was restored in Kendrapada, Angul, Dhenkanal, Nayagarh and Jajpur districts. In Cuttack, electricity has been restored to 97% of consumers, in Khordha to 94% and in Jagatsinghpur to 98%. 100% electricity in these districts will be restored in next few days. In Puri district, as on date electricity has been restored to only 77,786 (30%) consumers out of 2,91,171 affected. Timeline has been set to complete all restoration by June 1st week.
It’s alleged that there is no unified command to direct ODRAF, NDRF and skilled personnel team to work in tandem.
The disaster response forces act as per the direction of the Relief Commissioner. There is no question of lack of unified command and control over these forces. Based on the predicted path of the cyclone received from the IMD and the vulnerability analysis done at the State level, prepositioning of the ODRAF, NDRF and Fire Services was done by the SRC, primarily to assist the district administrations in evacuation of people from vulnerable areas. Requisition of additional NDRF teams from neighbouring battalions and requisition of helicopters from Ministry of Home Affairs for airdropping operation were done from the SRC Office. In the cyclone’s aftermath, movement of ODRAF, NDRF and other technical teams for road clearance and other activities was coordinated from the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) with the SRC being the Incident Commander.
What are the steps to ensure the State and Central Governments’ packages reach the beneficiaries without indulgence of middlemen?
The disbursement of gratuitous relief and other assistances from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDFR) are generally done through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). Due to disruption of banking services, relaxation in DBT was made and disbursement of gratuitous relief was done through cash payment. However, proper systems are in place to ensure that the relief is being properly distributed. All grievances received at the State and district levels will be dealt with stringently. As the banking services are returning to normalcy, all assistances shall be paid through DBT.
The Fani ravages pose a threat which is nearly impossible to be met by the State Government alone. What steps are taken to declare it as a national disaster by the Union Government?
It is true that it is nearly impossible to compensate the losses by the State Government alone. As per the Disaster Management Act-2005 and the guidelines of SDRF/ NDRF, there is no provision for declaring any disaster as a national calamity by the Centre. The available funds in the SDRF will be utilised for relief, rehabilitation, payment of ex-gratia and immediate restoration activities. The State is in the process of damage assessment and will seek additional funds from the NDRF by submitting a memorandum in the laid-down procedures. The Energy infrastructure has been very severely affected. The extant norms of assistance from SDRF & NDRF are quite insufficient considering the huge damage to the power supply network.
The Union Government has been moved to treat this cyclone and the destruction in energy sector as a special case and relax the NDRF/SDRF norms to accommodate the provision of non-admissible items like 33-KV infrastructures, grid substations and labour charge components. Similarly, funding will be sought for other sectors where the assistance under the SDRF/NDRF norms is not sufficient. Hon’ble Chief Minister has appealed for donation to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. Besides, corporate houses are requested to provide CSR funds.