Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat on Wednesday demanded an additional package of Rs 4000 crore from the Centre for rehabilitation and reconstruction work in the flood-hit hill state saying the package of nearly Rs 8000 crore sanctioned for the purpose by UPA II was not enough.
"As per current estimates based on assessment of the ground realities in affected areas, the package of Rs 8000 crore sanctioned by UPA II does not seem enough. We need an additional package of Rs 4000 crore to carry out rehabilitation and reconstruction," Rawat told reporters.
"Rehabilitating 283 villages and reconstruction in the flood-hit areas is a huge task for which the additional package of Rs 4000 crore is a must. We hope the new NDA government to be headed by Narendra Modi will appreciate the circumstances of the hill state and won't hesitate in offering the package", he said.
Congratulating Modi on his election as the leader of BJP Parliamentary party, the chief minister said he will meet new PM soon after his swearing-in to formalise this demand and also present to him a document summing up the aspirations of the people of Uttarakhand.
Rawat also said that after assuming office the Modi-led government should extend the tax holiday for Uttarakhand till 2020. The facility given to the hill state during previous NDA government led by Atal Behari Vajpayee was withdrawn in 2010 when UPA was in power at the Centre.
The chief minister also congratulated the five BJP Lok Sabha MPs elected from Uttarakhand recently and expressed the hope that they would fulfil their role as strong advocates for the hill state.
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