TN 3rd worst-hit state this year; hectares of crop damaged

After West Bengal and Bihar, Tamil Nadu has suffered the most due to natural calamities this year.

Even before the latest spell of rain that put Chennai out of reach, 169 people were killed between April 1 and November 24, besides 2,038 cattle deaths, 0.92 lakh hectares of crop area and 1.02 lakh buildings were damaged.

The extent of damage this year could be gauged when one compares the figures of the previous years.

While there was no loss of lives or damage during 2013-14 due to natural calamities, 75 people lost their lives in 2014-15, besides damaging 3,750 buildings but no crop area was affected. In 2012-13, 15 people were killed in natural disasters.

According to government statistics, the Centre has released Rs 643.04 crore as its share of State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF) to Tamil Nadu this year out of a total allocation of Rs 679 crore.

Officials said state governments undertake relief operations in the wake of natural disasters from SDRF already at their disposal. If such funds are inadequate, an additional assistance is extended from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).

West Bengal and Bihar were also severely affected by natural disasters this fiscal.

While 1,192 people have lost their lives across the country due to natural calamities since April 1, West Bengal tops the list with 193 deaths while Bihar had reported 158 deaths.

Bengal, which experienced one of the worst floods in August this year, again has the highest area of agricultural land affected. While Bengal had 13.02 lakh hectares of crop area affected, Bihar had 8.08 lakh hectares.