Himachal people stood firm in facing calamity of decade: CM Sukhu

Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], October 13 : Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Friday said that people of the hill state stood firm in facing the calamity of the decade unitedly.
The Chief Minister was speaking after flagging off the solidarity march, organized by the State Disaster Management Authority and Himachal Pradesh government on International Disaster Reduction Day.
The Chief Minister said that awareness was necessary to deal effectively with disasters as challenges can be faced boldly if one has the right information about the type and intensity of the catastrophe. We should also be ready to face any kind of calamity including earthquakes in the near future, said the Chief Minister.
The people of Himachal have stood firm in facing the calamity of the decade unitedly, said Sukhu.
He thanked the people of the State for coming forward and donating generously towards the noble cause and revealed that so far about Rs. 222 crore has been received in the Disaster Relief Fund set up to help the disaster-affected people.
He appreciated the initiatives of the small children who donated from their piggy banks and also expressed gratitude towards the government employees, pensioners, MLAs and every section of the society who contributed voluntarily as per their ability.
"I have never seen such a calamity in which more than 500 people died, more than 16,000 houses were damaged and property worth more than Rs 12,000 crore was damaged in the state" he said, adding that this was the worst disaster of the decade which badly has hit the State both socially and economically.
Sukhu said that after the natural disaster in Himachal Pradesh, the government has decided to tighten the rules regarding construction works.
"The government has also imposed a ban on construction work in the capital Shimla and is preparing to bring some areas around Shimla into the green area," Sukhu said.
Amid reports of relaxation in construction work on the green area in the capital, Chief Minister Sukhu has clarified that at present no relaxation has been given on construction works in the green area.
The Chief Minister said that the Shimla Development Plan case is going on under the Supreme Court, hence giving any kind of permission for construction in Shimla is beyond the authority of the state government. He said that on the orders of the apex, the previous government had presented the Shimla Development Plan in the High Court, on which the present government is going to reconsider and take more strictness. "The state government is going to declare 5 to 6 new areas in the state as green fields and a report has also been sought in this regard," he said.
The Chief Minister said that by taking lessons from the natural disaster in the state, one should be prepared for future challenges. "The government is tightening the rules from the construction point of view and has also decided to keep a minimum distance of 5 meters from drains and 7 meters from ravines," he said.
The students taking part in the march believe that the youths are the future of the state and nation and it is important for them to be educated on such important issues.