CHENNAI: The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGOM) at its meeting held on Thursday has approved the Tsunami Rehabilitation Programme at an estimated cost of Rs. 9870.25 crore comprising Rs. 3344.13 crore through external agencies (World Bank, ADB and IFAD), Rs. 1607.01 crore under the Rajiv Gandhi package and the balance of Rs. 4641.11 crore as additional budgetary support.

The proposal approved by the EGOM was based on a consultative process facilitated by the Planning Commission's Core Group for Tsunami Rehabilitation Programme.

Rehabilitation initiatives spread over eleven sectors were approved for tsunami affected States and Union Territories of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Pondicherry and Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI), according to an official release from New Delhi.

The December 26, 2004 tsunami left over 10,000 dead, 5,800 missing and affected 36,500 livestock. Over 1,50,000 houses were damaged and 83,000 boats had been lost or damaged. The Government of India had sanctioned the Rajiv Gandhi Package immediately to provide emergent relief measures covering a wide canvas of relief and care for medical, emergency feeding and temporary shelter.

The major sectors comprising approximately 75 per cent of the outlay include housing (30%), fishery (11%), ports and jetties (13%), roads and bridges (13%) and environmental and coastal protection (8%).

The programme will be implemented over a period of four years (2005-09). In continuation of programmes already being implemented the EGOM approved Rs. 788.00 crore for the current year, which includes Rs. 371.00 crore as EAP and Rs. 2 470.00 crore with Rs. 1059.00 crore as EAP for the next year (Annual Plan 2006-07).

The rehabilitation strategy for housing includes grant for damaged houses and loan for vulnerable dwellings, owner constructed housing, mandatory insurance, earthquake/cyclone resistant and

provisioning of onsite infrastructure. Considerable progress has already been made. NGOs have also come forward to assist in the permanent shelter programme. Over 40,000 are already in final stages of construction.

In the fisheries sector the strategy includes repair/replacement/upgradation of lost and damaged boats, up-gradation of fishery infrastructure and value addition in fishery sector. So far, 34,481 boats have already been repaired or replaced. Many of them are with engines on board and are FRP boats.

Under agriculture reclaiming impaired agricultural and plantation land and broad basing of agricultural livelihoods is proposed. States have already taken cognisance of 23068 ha. of submerged land and 433 farmers' SHGs have been set up in Tamil Nadu to assist in availing credit and improved agricultural practices with 22,500 million tons of green manure seeds being distributed in Pondicherry.

For the aquifers in ANI, a menu of technical solutions including Low Temperature Thermal

Desalination, rainwater harvesting, reverse osmosis etc. are approved.

Provision has been made for coastal protection measures such as mangrove plantation, dykes etc., repair and reformation of existing seawall and detailed scientific study for location-specific mitigation measures.

For damaged roads, 30 per cent work has already been initiated in Kerala and 70 per cent of the work in ANI is already in hand.

The Department of Shipping has already started the repair and reconstruction work in ANI for wharfs, dry docks, bamboo flat jetties in Flat Bay, Port Blair, Mayabunder and Haddo, the release said.

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