Centre releases first instalment of SDRF

Context:

Even though usually the first instalment of the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) is released in June as per the recommendations of the Finance Commission – the Centre has released the first instalment to States earlier this time, in the wake of the second wave of COVID-19 that has claimed thousands of lives since April 2021.

Relevance:

GS-III: Disaster Management, GS-II: Polity and Governance (Centre-State Financial Relations)

Dimensions of the Article:

1. About State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF)
2. National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF)

About State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF)

• The State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) is constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.
• It is the primary fund available with State Governments for responses to notified disasters.
• The Central Government contributes 75% of SDRF allocation for general category States/UTs and 90% for special category States/UTs (NE States, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir).
• The annual Central contribution is released in two equal installments as per the recommendation of the Finance Commission.
• SDRF shall be used only for meeting the expenditure for providing immediate relief to the victims.
• Disasters covered under SDRF are – Cyclone, drought, earthquake, fire, flood, tsunami, hailstorm, landslide, avalanche, cloudburst, pest attack, frost and cold waves.
• Local Disaster: A State Government may use up to 10 percent of the funds available under the SDRF for providing immediate relief to the victims of natural disasters that they consider to be ‘disasters’ within the local context in the State and which are not included in the notified list of disasters of the Ministry of Home Affairs subject to the condition that the State Government has listed the State specific natural disasters and notified clear and transparent norms and guidelines for such disasters with the approval of the State Authority, i.e., the State Executive Authority (SEC).

National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF)

• The National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, supplements SDRF of a State, in case of a disaster of severe nature, provided adequate funds are not available in SDRF.
• NDRF is defined in the Disaster Management Act, as a fund managed by the Central Government for meeting the expenses for emergency response, relief and rehabilitation due to any threatening disaster situation or disaster.
• NDRF is constituted to supplement the funds of the State Disaster Response Funds (SDRF) of the states to facilitate immediate relief in case of calamities of a severe nature.
• The financial assistance from SDRF/NDRF is for providing immediate relief and is not compensation for loss/damage to properties /crops.
• In fact, the hitherto existing National Calamity Contingency Fund (NCCF) was renamed as National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) on 28 September 2010 with the enactment of the Disaster Management Act in 2005 and consequent changes in the design and structure of disaster management in India.
• The National Executive Committee (NEC) of the National Disaster Management Authority takes decisions on the expenses from National Disaster Response Fund.

-Source: The Hindu