Thursday, February 3 2005 16:22 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa today (Feb 3, 2005) announced a fresh relief package to over three lakh Tsunami affected families in the State.

Under the package, the State would give kerosene, edible oil, pulses, tamarind, chillies, salt, sugar and tea powder, costing Rs 350 per month besides 30 KG of rice and Rs 1,000 per month for three months, starting this month, she told the State Assembly.

The package would cost the exchequer Rs 137 crore, she said while making a statement in the house.

She said it would take another three months for the fishermen and others to start a new life.

Following complaints that the benefits announced in the first package had not reached the families fully, it had been decided that the relief materials pertaining to the second package would be delivered to womenfolk in the family.

These materials would be supplied through fair price shops in the villages to the affected families in the presence of the members of committees, appointed for monitoring the relief work, she said.

She said the Centre's notification on January 31 had clearly stated that its package would be routed through the State Government.

She had written a letter to the Prime Minister after the Finance Minister P Chidambaram had announced that the package would be routed through nationalised banks, which sought to ignore the State Governments.

The fresh notification had protected the State's interests and powers, she said adding this was due to her efforts.

Jayalalithaa said she would continue to press the Centre to fully subsidise the fishermen for the purchase of boats to replace their lost or damaged ones.

The Centre had sanctioned relief to fishermen, subsidising only 35 per cent of the cost of the fishing craft.

She said it was estimated that Rs 923.01 crore was needed for restoring the livelihood of fishermen and the Centre had sanctioned Rs 356.54 crore from the national calamity contingency fund.

In times of national calamity like Tsunami, the entire relief should come from national calamity contingency fund. She had sought the entire money from the Centre as the State had exhausted funds from the calamity relief fund, meant for the States.

She said she would be inaugurating a scheme to subsidise the purchase of mechanised boats for fishermen here tomorrow, under which a subsidy, subject to maximum of Rs 5 lakh, would be given to fishermen.