CONTENTS
Department of Relief and
Rehabilitation
(ERTL Branch)
From
Financial
Commissioner Revenue,
Punjab,
Chandigarh
To
1.
All
the Commissioners of Divisions in the State.
2.
All the
Deputy Commissioners in the State
3.
All
the Sub Divisional Officers(c) in the State
Memo No.5/49/87-ERTL-V/11726
Chandigarh dated the 6/11/1987
Sub: Instructions for disbursement of relief
to the farmers and landless persons who have suffered damage to their crops
during Kharif 1987.
As you are aware Punjab
had hardly recovered from the serious natural calamity caused by heavy
rains / hailstorms in the months of
April and May 1987 which had caused extensive damage to the ripened and
harvested wheat crop in 9 out of 12 districts, that another serious natural
calamity in the shape of Drought which has had no paralled in the past several
decades be fell the state. After getting reports from the field, the drought
affected areas were identified as Ropar, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur and parts of
Patiala district in the Kandi belt and the districts of Sangrur, Bathinda,
Faridkot and Ferozepur in the water scarcity zone. A Central Team headed by the
Additional Secretary, Government of India, Ministry of Agriculture visited some
of the affected districts on 10-11/9/1987. The State Govt’s proposals on
drought relief submitted to the Central Govt through its memoranda were
considered in the wrap up meeting on 12/9/87. In early Sept 1987 Deputy
Commissioners were requested to undertake special girdawari to identify the
areas left unsown during Kharif, 1987 compared to Kharif 1986. They were also
asked to assess the extent of damage caused to the Kharif crops (above 25% and
upto 50%, 51% and upto 75% and above 75%) during the normal Kharif girdawari.
2. As
you are already aware, the State Government has announced a bonus of Rs. 17/-
per quintal on paddy sold in notified mandis by Punjab farmers this year.
3. For
farmers who had sown non paddy crops and for small and marginal farmers who
have not been able to sow some acres during Kharif 1987 compared to Kharif
1986, Government has decided to provide the following types of Drought Relief:
“Input subsidy for small and
marginal farmers for areas remaining unsown during Kharif 1987”
Small
and marginal farmers holding land not exceeding 5 acres (Whether irrigated or
unirrigated, whether as owners, tenants or mortgagees) will be provided input
subsidy in kind at the rate of Rs. 350/- per acre in the shape of seed,
fertilizers, pesticides, etc. through MARKFED. Assessment lists of eligible
small and marginal farmers will be drawn up by the Deputy Commissioners and
made available to the District Manager, MARKFED. Markfed will arrange lifting
of inputs by eligible small and marginal farmers against their entitlement and
will subsequently file a copy of their disbursement record for audit purposes
with SDO(c) by 31/12/1987.
As in Rabbi 1987, crop damage relief is to be
provided for damage to non paddy crops in the cases where the damage exceeds
25%, at the same scales as were applicable to the wheat crops damaged during
April-May 1987. This relief will be given khatauni wise and upper limit will be
5 acres per khatauni. If there are more than one farmers in a single khatauni,
the relief will be
given to them pro-rate. Farmers will include owners, tenants and mortgagees
with possession.
Farmers
Relief in cash to the farmers on
account of damage to crops due to drought during Kharif 1987
(a) Where the loss to crops exceed 75% Rs.700 per acre
(b) Where the loss to crops exceeds Rs.400 per acre
50%
but does not exceed 75%
(c) Where the loss to standing crops Rs.200 per acre
exceeds 25% but doe not exceed
50%.
(d) Where the loss does not exceed 25% Rs. Nil
This
relief will be disbursed through Account Payee Cheques.
4. Fodder relief for landless cattle
owners and marginal farmers, cattle owners
Landless cattle owners & Marginal farmers who are also cattle
owners, in the Kandi areas are proposed to be given fodder relief at the rate
of Rs. 30 per adult animal and at Rs.15/- per calf subject to an over all
ceiling of 8 animals per family. This relief will be disbursed in cash through
Account Payee Cheques. Subject to availability of funds, small farmers and
Marginal farmers in the Kandi areas may also be given such relief.
5. Guidelines for preparation and
verification of assessment lists
(i)
The assessment
lists of landowners/cultivators and of landless cattle owners, eligible for
relief, would be prepared on the basis of special and general girdawari carried
out during Sept.-Oct. 1987 separately in the prescribed proforma. These lists
should bear the certificates from the Circle Revenue Officer about their
authenticity. Every page of the list should be countersigned by SDO (C) concerned. The lists should be prepared in
duplicate, one copy of which would be maintained n the office of SDO(c) concerned
and the other given to the Circle Revenue Incharge of the disbursement of
relief.
(ii)
10%
check of these lists should be conducted by the SDO(c) himself as per general
instructions on the subject.
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6. The
relief shall be disbursed strictly in cash and kind to the eligible farmers,
tenants and mortgagees with possession through account payee’s cheques to be
delivered to them by Sub Divisional Officer (C) or Circle Revenue Officer
concerned. The following procedure shall be followed : |
(i)
The
disbursement shall normally be made by the Sub Divisional Officers(c) and the
Circle Revenue Officers. However, other Naib Tehsildars may also be authorised
to do this work by the Deputy Commissioners concerned.
(ii)
Each
Disbursing Officer should be given a specified number of villages for the
purpose of disbursement and his detailed programme of disbursement should be
available at the Sub Divisional headquarters and District headquarters.
(iii)
Disbursement
should be made only in the village assembly in the presence of village elders
i.e. Lambardars/Sarpanches and Panches, etc.
(iv)
Publicity
should be made about date, place and time of disbursement in the village
atleast two days in advance. The entry to this effect should also be made in
the Roznamcha Waqiati.
(v)
Disbursement
should be made at one go for the farmers/tenants mortgagee with possession
simultaneously.
(vi)
The
share of land owners/tenants/sindis shall be apportioned amongst them according
to the entries in the revenue record or as agreed to by both the parties or the
customary terms of tenancy etc.
(vii)
It has
been noticed that at some of the places in the state, although the cultivation
is made by the tenant but the entries in the revenue record are in the name of
the landowners as “self cultivation”.
It has been decided that discreet enquiries should be made by the
Disbursement Officers in this respect. They may prepare individual files and
keep a note about their verification which should be duly authenticated by
them. On the basis of this verification, the share of relief should be appointed
between the landowners and the actual cultivator-tenant interse in the ratio in
which they would have otherwise distributed their crops. The files should then
be consigned alongwith other Disbursement Records in the Record Room so as to
be available at the time of enquiry into any complaint, as and when required.
(viii)
The
Disbursement Officer shall be personally responsible for correctness of the
lists and the truthfulness of the disbursement. After completing the
disbursement on the date notified, he shall certify about the factum of
disbursement and the total amount disbursed, in the Disbursement Register. No
interpolation in these lists should be made. Overwriting should be avoided.
(ix)
Payments
should be made only through payees A/C Cheques. To ensure the availability of
requisite number of Cheque Books, adequate funds with the banks concerned and
prompt payment by the banks on the production of cheques at the counter, the
Deputy Commissioners should tie up with the banks located in the Districts and
finalise modalities. The services of Nationalised Banks, Co-operative Banks and
Land Mortgage Banks should be utilised to the maximum extent for this purpose.
7. Supervision
and Checking
Besides the Sub Divisional Officers (c), Deputy
Commissioners and Commissioners of Divisions may either themselves conduct
intensive tours of the area in their jurisdiction to supervise the disbursement
of relief on Drought. They should ensure that the instructions issued by the
government are meticulously followed and the time of schedule notified is
strictly adhered to. The State government shall also depute some officers from
the headquarters to coordinate and supervise the overall arrangements relating
to disbursement of Drought relief.
8. Disposal
of complaints
The Sub Divisional Officer(C ) and
Deputy Commissioners should ensure that a proper record of all the complaints
received about the assessment/disbursement of relief, is maintained and its
regular monitoring is down. Weekly reports about the number of complaints
pending, number of complaints received and disposed of, may be sent to the
State Government as before. As far as possible, it should be ensured that such
complaints are attended to within the shortest period say 7-10 days and are not
allowed to remain pending for more than a fortnight.
9. Monitoring
(i)
The
Divisional Commissioners should monitor the progress of disbursement of relief
regularly in this respect and ensure that the time schedule is strictly
followed.
(ii)
One of
the Additional Deputy Commissioners at headquarters should be designated by the
Deputy Commissioners as Nodal Officer for monitoring the progress of
Disbursement of Relief in the District and reporting the same to the government
and to the Divisional Commissioner every Monday. His name, designation,
telephone Nos. (both office and residence) should be intimated to the
government.
10. Avoiding
of mistakes pointed out by Audit
Audit parties sent by Accountant
General, Punjab for conducting Audit of the disbursement of relief on account
of Natural Calamities have generally pointed out the following type of
objections :
(i)
While
disbursing of relief, land ceiling imposed by Govt is not strictly followed
leading to excess payment.
(ii)
Assessment
lists are not properly prepared, checked and countersigned.
(iii)
Registers
regarding accounts of disbursement are not property maintained.
(iv)
Disbursement
certificates in respect of relief disbursed are not sent promptly to Accountant
General (Audit).
(v)
Audited
and certified figures of expenditure are not sent in time, resulting in delay
in the reconciliation of accounts.
The Deputy Commissioners and Sub
Divisional Officer (C ) should ensure that the assessment and disbursement
record is correctly maintained in the proforma already enclosed with the Punjab
Government instructions dated 23/5/1987 with necessary modifications,
separately for input subsidy, relief for damaged cropped area and subsidy for
fodder. The audit objections pointed out above and also those indicated in the
earlier audit note should be taken care of and the mistakes are not repeated.
11. Time
schedule for various activities
The preparation and verification of
assessment lists of farmers and cultivators should be completed by 31st
October 1987.
The
disbursement of relief in cash should be taken up from 20th November
1987 and completed within a month by 20/12/1987. The complete Disbursement
Records should be consigned to the record room of Sub Divisional Officer (C )
by 31/12/1987. Deputy Commissioners should send their detailed write up
regarding the successful completion of relief work to the government by the 15th
January 1987, in the proforma mutatis-Mutandis already circulated.
12. At
the time of preparation of assessment lists and the disbursement of relief during
Rabi 1987, certain clarifications were sought by the Deputy Commissioners which
were given by the State Government from time to time. The gist of the various
points raised and the clarifications issued by the State Government in regard
to the instructions on Relief to farmers on account of heavy rains & storms
etc. is given in the Annexure-I.
13. The
receipt of these instructions may please be acknowledged immediately.
Revenue
department
Annexure-I
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Gist of clarifications
issued by the State Government in respect of various points raised by the
Deputy Commissioners regarding disbursement of relief on account of damage
caused by heavy rains/storms during April-May 1987 |
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1 |
Punjab Govt TPM No. 5/8/87-ERTL-V/5330 dated
3/6/1987 |
Method of apportionment of
relief in case of a holding where a part of the land is under self
cultivation by the landowner and the other part is with one or more tenants.
If a landowner has five acres of land under self cultivation and 10 acres are
cultivated through a tenant, the landowner will be entitled to the extent of
1/3rd or the permissible ceiling of 5 acres and the tenants would
got relief in the same proportion as the area under their tenants bears to
the total holding. In case of Batai the landowner will get his share of Batai
out of relief payable to his tenant |
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2 |
Punjab Govt TPM No. 5/8/87-ERTL-V/Spl dated
3/6/1987 |
Disentitlement to relief
of unauthorised occupants of Govt/ Evacuee lands- Those occupants who have
been in possession of Govt / evacuee land and have been paying damages
charges / rent to govt will however be entitled to compensation. |
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3 |
Punjab Govt TPM No. 5/8/87-ERTL-V/Spl dated
10/6/87 |
Payment of relief through
special power of attorney in case of absentees- In case of absentee relief
may be disbursed to the next of kin on production of special power of
attorney. |
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4 |
Punjab Govt TPM No. 5/8/87-ERTL-V/702 dated
11/6/1987 |
A mortgagee with
possession who has done self cultivation shall be treated as a separate unit
for grant of relief subject to ceiling of five acres. |
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5 |
Punjab Govt TPM No. 5/8/87-ERTL-V/Spl dated
17/6/1987 |
Holding of discreet
enquiry regarding payment of relief to tenants where the entries in the
Revenue Record are in the name of the landowner as self cultivation but the
cultivation was actually done by the tenants. |
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6 |
Punjab Govt TPM No.5/8/87-ERTL-V/ dated 24/6/87 |
While holding local
enquiry the enquiry officer should copt village headman, panches and
Sarpanches and representatives of Kisan Sabha etc. |
10/10/1988
DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
(ERTL BRANCH)
To
1. All the Commissioners of Divisions, in
the State.
2. All
the Deputy Commissioners in the State.
3. All
the Sub-Divisional Officers(Civil)/All
Tehsildars in the State.
Memo No.5/ 108/88-ERTL.V /9737
Chandigarh, dated the l0th October, 1988.
Sub : Policy Instructions regarding relief for
persons affected by floods during the 1988 Monsoon season.
As you are fully aware, the flash
floods during September-October ,1988 have been unprecedented in Punjab's
History of Natural Calamities, in terms of the scale of havoc that they have
wrought in the state. The floods have resulted in marooning of a large number
of villages on both sides of our principal rivers i.e. Ravi, Beas and Sutlej,
forcing people to seek shelter on roof tops, trees and tops of embankments,
etc. to save their lives. A large number of human beings and cattle have been
washed away alongwith house-hold goods such as food stuffs, fodder stocks,
clothing and other a articles. Besides, large villages, the in number of other
torrential rains have caused heavy damage to standing and harvested crops,
houses, fodder stocks and cattle, etc. Tubewells and farm machinery in the
flood affected villages have been badly damaged. A very large number of katcha
houses have collapsed or have been washed away and many pucca houses have also
been badly damaged. Floods have also
resulted In large scale damage to public utilities, such as roads, irrigation
channels, flood protection embankments, buildings etc. While the detailed assessment of damage in
various sectors may take some more time, on the basis of the available
information, a detailed memorandum is being prepared for submission to the
Government of India for seeking Central Assistance to the maximum possible
extent.
2. In
the meanwhile certain decisions have been taken by the State Government to
extend some immediate relief to the people in the flood affected areas. In the
following paragraphs the policy regarding relief and procedure for carrying out
proper assessment and disbursement etc. are spelt out.
1. LOSS
OF HUMAN LIFE
Even through the figures for loss of
human lives reported to the State Control Room upto 9/10/1988 reflect a total
of 616, the actual loss may be substantially higher. Government to extend some
immediate relief to the people in the flood. In order to arrive at the correct
figure for loss of human life, Deputy Commissioner may utilize the services of
Headmaster of local Government schools carrying out a verification with the
help of the voters lists of each village, in the presence of villager elders
such as Lambardars, Sarpanches and Members Panchayats. The particulars of
persons reported to be missing or dead in the wake of resent floods should be
noted down a copy of the list sent both to the Sub Divisional Headquarters and
Districts Headquarters. This exercise has to be carried out more particularly for all the marooned
village which had to face the full onslaught of the surging floods.
As regards the rate of relief,
Government has decided to allow an ex-gratia grant to the next of kin of a
deceased person, at the rate of Rs. 15,000/- per adult and Rs. 5,000/- per
minor who has lost his life in the floods.
Efforts should be made to disburse
the ex-gratia grants to the next of kin as early as possible, so that the
families concerned are able to take some steps towards their rehabilitation.
The floods have taken a very heavy toll of cattle and many farmers as
well as agricultural labourers have been deprived of this valuable asset.
Though the replacement cost of milch cattle is considerable higher, keeping in
view paucity -of resources, it has been decided by the State Government to
allow relief at a uniform scale of Rs.1,000/- per head of milch cattle lost in
the floods. The same rate will also apply to loss of camels. As regards relief
for loss of goat and sheep, the rate of relief is being raised from Rs. 100/-
to Rs. 200/- per head. Assessment of cattle loss etc. should be carried out by
gazetted officers with the help of the staff of the Animal Husbandry Department.While
carrying out the assessment, village elders should be associated alongwith
other interested community representative.
In respect of house damage, it is clarified that the relief is admissible
only for a residential house and can be paid for only ONE house per family even
though a large number of houses belonging to that family may have been damaged.
Sheds used for tethering cattle or storage of fodder straw, etc. are not
eligible for getting house-damage relief. House damage relief will be
admissible at the following scales: -
(i) Pucca House - Fully damaged Rs.
2,000/-
Partially damaged Rs.
1,000/-
(ii)
Katcha House - Fully
damaged Rs. 1000/-
Partially damaged Rs. 500/-
(iii) Hut Fully damaged Rs. 250/-
Partially damaged Rs. 125/-
It is certified that in order to
qualify for being categorized as partially damaged, there should be significant
and visible damage such as collapse of a wall, portion of roof, settlement of
foundations resulting in serious cracks etc., to the extent of 50r., overall
damage. A fully damaged house would be one which would require to be fully
re-constructed.
While carrying out the assessment
through Gazetted Officers village elders should also be associated alongwith
other interested community representatives.
Floods in Ravi, Beas and Sutlej have
washed away fodder stocks in practically all marooned and washed away villages.
Likewise, floods in River Ghaggar and its tributaries also resulted in the
washing away of fodder stocks in a number of villages. To meet the immediate
needs of fodder In such villages, it has been decided that fodder grant should be
allowed at the existing rate of Rs. 301- per month per cattle subject to a
maximum of 8 heads of cattle per family, for a period of two months. For the
villages which have become accessible the fodder grant may be paid in cash
rather than in kind. The mode of payment “by cash” is explained in Para No.
XIII Infra. In so far as villages which are still in-accessible or marooned, It
has been decided that concentrated cattle feed at the scale of 2 Kg. per head
of cattle per day should be provided free of cost till they continue to be
marooned. Thereafter, such villages will be
entitled to, receive fodder relief at the normal rate of Rs. 301- per
animal per month subject to a maximum of 8 heads of cattle per family.
Identification of marooned and other
villages where fodder stocks have been washed away and where fodder grant is to
be allowed is being left to the Deputy Commissioner. They should issue a
certified list under their signatures for further preparation of village-wise
lists, etc. by the officers put on this duty. In this case also the assessment
should be made by the gazetted officers in the company of village elders and
other community representatives who wish to be coopted.
V. SPECIAL
RELIEF FOR INHABITANTS OF MAROONED AND WASHED AWAY VILLAGES
As stated earlier, the recent floods
have resulted in marooning/washing away of a very large number of villages
which have had to face the full fury of floods. All the houses situated in
these villages got flooded resulting in loss of household goods including
foodstuffs, clothing and other articles. These inhabitants require special
assistance for their rehabilitation in terms of supply of some basic
requirements such as food, clothing and blankets. It has, therefore, been
decided that for two months i.e. October and November, 1988 all such
inhabitants may be provided the following items of relief free of cost :-
a) for a family of 5 or more members, 2
bags of wheat of 95 Kgs. each alongwith a cash grant of Rs. 480 to cater to the
food requirements the end of December ,1988. In case the family wishes to get whole meal atta in place of wheat, the equivalent quantity of atta
should be supplied.
b) 15
meters of cloth per family of 5 members of more.
c) 2
blankets per family.
A family will be deemed to comprise
to husband, wife, children, dependent parents and any other members wholly
dependent on the head of the family. An adult married son having a separate
kitchen and paying separate chullah tax will be reckoned as a separate family
unit for purposes of this relief. In case the family comprises of less than 5
members, the relief is to be allowed at the rate of Rs. 90/- per member per
month for 2 months. In such cases, the choice may be left to the Head of the
family whether he wants to get the food grant wholly "in cash" or
partly "in cash" and partly in kind. Similarly, the cloth allowance
will be limited to 3 meters per member of the family. However, two blankets
will be admissible for such families also.
In so far as the mode of
distribution of wheat/atta in kind is concerned, in case the village has become
accessible by road, permits should be issued on a specified godown/flour mill
situated as close to the affected village as possible from where the
permit-holder can obtain the supply of wheal/atta himself. Permit-holders
should be encouraged to arrange transportation of wheat, etc. to the village on
a community basis, as had been done during the relief operation in June-August,
1987.
The Deputy Commissioners should settle
the details of food/ godowns / flour mills from which wheat/atta is to be
provided in consultation with the concerned District food and Supplies
Controllers.
As regards the supply of cloth, the
Deputy Commissioners should arrange the required supply of cloth at a price not
exceeding Rs.10/- per meter through Punjab State Handloom and Textile
Corporation. As regards blankets, the Deputy Commissioners should arrange the
required supplies through the Punjab State Handloom and Textile Corporation at
a ceiling price not exceeding Rs. 80/- per blanket. The actual rate paid to the
supplier should be as per the rate contract approved by the Controller of
Stores for the current financial year or by the financial Commissioner,
Revenue.
Government have decided to remit
land revenue and abiana for the Kharif 1988 crop in all marooned and washed
away villages. The remission will also be admissible in other villages in
respect of farmers/ tenants who have suffered more than 50% damage to their
crops. While deciding the eligibility of an individual farmer for remission of
land revenue and abiana, his total holding in that village will be taken into
consideration. For example, if a person owns 10 acres of land in a village out
of which 4 acres have suffered 100% damage, he will not qualify for remission
of land revenue and abiana, as his over-all percentage of damage for the
purposes of this relief works out to only 40%.
Government have decided that pending
the conversion/re-scheduling of short term and medium term cooperative
agricultural loans, recovery of such loans should be stayed in respect of
farmers who have suffered more than 50% damage to their crops. For purposes of
this concession, the percentage of damage will be calculated in the same manner
as applicable to land revenue and abiana discussed in the preceding paragraph.
The recovery of electricity bills in
respect of both domestic and agricultural tubewell connection has been stayed
in respect of marooned villages as well as in respect of other individuals who
have suffered more than 50% crop loss. Detailed instruction in this behalf will
be issued by the Punjab State Electricity Board.
It has been decided that landless
agricultural workers in both marooned villages as well as other villages
affected by heavy rains and floods, landless agricultural workers should be
given priority in the matter of employment while undertaking repairs of public
utilities by the concerned departments and undertaking repairs of community
assets through N.R.E.P., R.L.E.G.P. In addition, such workers who are
inhabitants of marooned or washed villages, will be entitled to special relief
mentioned in para V above.
Government have decided that free
wheat grain for seeds at the rate of 40
Kg. per acre should be distributed In respect of land holding not exceeding 5
acres, where the damage to the farmers' crop exceeds 50% taking over his entire holding in the
village. The free seed will be admissible only in respect of acreage sustaining
more than 50% damage.
Though the actual scales of relief for
damage to crops are yet to be decided and will be communicated later on, the
scheme of relief will be as under :-
1. Relief will be admissible for a maximum
of 5 acres of damaged crop per khatauni.If the khatauni has more than one
co-sharer, the total relief admissible will be divided among the co-sharers in
proportion to their shares.
2. Within the ceiling of 5 acres, if for
example, 3 acres have sustained damage between 76% to 100% and 2 acres have
sustained damage between 51% to 75%, the relief payable will be worked out in
accordance with the different scales allowed for different categories of
damage.
3. In case of land which is being
cultivated by a tenant on chakota rent and chakota has already been paid for
the Kharif, 1988 crop to the landlord, the relief admissible will be paid entirely to the tenant.
In the
case of a tenant who is obliged to pay batai,the relief admissible will be
shared between the landlord and tenant in the ratio of 1/3:2/3.
4. Sometimes, though the khasra girdawari
shows that the land is under self-cultivation of the owners, in actual
practice, a tenant is cultivating the land. In such cases, the officer should,
at the time of preparing the assessment list, hold a local enquiry from
cultivators of neighbouring fields and village elders in order to ascertain as
to who is in actual cultivation of the
land. If It Is found that the land is being cultivated by a tenant, the relief admissible should be
paid to the tenant, etc. as per instructions contained in the preceding sub-paragraph
3.
5. Where an unauthorised cultivator is
under cultivating possession of Government land, relief should be allowed to
him to the extent of 2/3rd of the relief admissible, leaving 1/3rd share
undisbursed as it pertains to Government 's share as landlord. While disbursing
the cultivators' share, any arrears of damage charges for unauthorised
cultivation in the preceding years should be deducted.
6. The percentage of damage has to be worked out on field-to-field basis and
no averaging is to be done for all the fields in the khatauni, taken
together. For example, if the khatauni
has 10 acres of land out of which, 5 acres have sustained damage between 76% to
100% while the remaining 5 acres are left unaffected, relief will be provided
upto the prescribed ceiling of 5 acres for all the 5 acres which have suffered
76% to 100% damage, at the scale applicable to this category of damage.
As has been clarified in the
instructions issued vide Memo No. 7/39/88-ERTL.I/8395, dated 7:.8.1988 the
assessment of damage and preparation of lists of the persons eligible fur
receiving the relief should be undertaken through gazetted officers in the
first instance itself, rather than leaving initial preparation to be done by
village level revenue officials and thereafter getting the same verified by
Supervisory Officers. 24 hours before the visit of the gazetted officer for
assessment of loss, villagers should be informed by- proclamation (Mushtri
Munadi) and a record to this effect got entered in the Roznamcha Waqiati of the
Patwari. At the time of carrying out the assessment, village elders such as
Lambardars, Sarpanch,Members of Panchayats should be coopted. any other
community representatives who wish to assist in the assessment may be permitted
to do so. Immediately after the assessment has been completed, an open village
assembly should be convened and the assessment list read out in the assembly.
Any objections which are raised regarding the correctness of the list should be
verified at the spot by the assessing officer and the list finalised there and
then. A certificate should be recorded on the assessment list by the gazetted
officer concerned bearing also the signatures of the village elders who have
been associated during the assessment.
However, in the case of assessment
of crop damage, the Circle Revenue Officer may be entrusted with the work of
assessment even if he is himself not a gazetted officer. However ,the same
procedure of carrying out the assessment in the presence of the village elders
will be applicable in the case of crop damage assessment also.
As already conveyed vide memo No.
5/8/87-ERTL.V/4985, dated 23rd May 1987 the disbursement of relief has to be
carried out through Account Payees cheques to prevent and bungling during the
disbursement of relief, and to avoid future complaints from the affected people
that they did not receive the full amount which was due to them under the
Government Policy. The practice of payment by account payee cheques which has
been enforced since the relief operations during June-August,1987 has elicited
very positive response from the people and Kisan Organizations. Several Deputy
Commissioners in the effected districts has made excellent arrangements with the
nationalised banks/cooperative banks to minimise the inconvenience to
beneficiaries who were receiving relief in the shape of account payee cheques.
Bank representatives were also present in the villages at the time when the
cheques were paid out. They opened the accounts of such of the farmers who did
not already have their account in any bank, in the village itself. The cheques
were also got credited by the beneficiaries into the newly opened account in
the village and the passbook showing credit entry of the amount was handed over
to the beneficiaries there and then. By following this practice, the
beneficiary was only required to go once to the bank and draw the amount
standing in his account. On this occasion also the above practice should be
adopted in all districts.
In so far as small amounts of upto
Rs. 250 are concerned the disbursement may be allowed by the Deputy
Commissineors by bearer cheques if a branch of a bank is available within a distance
of 2 Kilometers from the village. However, if no such branch is available he
may allow disbursement of such small amounts not exceeding Rs. 250/- in cash.
Amounts less than Rs. 25/- should not be disbursed, as it is likely to create
harassment to the beneficiaries than providing him any tangible relief.
Disbursement of relief should be
undertaken by gazetted officers in all cases in open village assembly, which
should be convened with prior notice of 24 hours given through public
proclamation (Mushtri Munadi). A report of the proclamation should be entered
in the Roznamcha Waqiati of the Patwari. The presence of village elders during
disbursement should be ensured and disbursement registers should be got
authenticated by village elders.
Sub Divisional Officers (Civil),
Deputy Commissioners and Commissioners of Divisions should conduct intensive
tours of the area in their jurisdiction to supervise the working of the
Disbursement Teams. They should ensure that the instructions issued by the
Government are meticulously followed.
The Deputy Commissioners/Sub
Divisional Officers (Civil) should ensure that a proper record of complaints
received about the assessment/disbursement is maintained and its regular
monitoring is done. Weekly reports about the No. of complaints pending, No. of
complaints received and disposed of, may be intimated to the Government. As for
as possible, it should be ensured that such complaints are attended to without
any delay and are not allowed to remain pending for more than a week.
You have already been requested to
set up District level Disastrous Advisory Committees consisting of all Ex-MLAs
belonging to the district and a representative each of the recognised political
parties, namely Congress (I), CP'I, CPI
(M), Janta, Lok Dal, BJP and Shromani Akali Dal. You should convene regular
meeting of the above committees in your
district and explain the details of the Government's relief policy to the
members. Their suggestions should be invited and their assistance sought in the
actual administration of the various relief measures. Minutes of such meetings
should also be sent to the State headquarters for information. These committees
should be kept informed about the number and nature of grievances and the
action taken by the Administration in resolving them concerning flood relief.
(i) the Divisional Commissioners should
monitoring the progress regularly in this respect and ensure that the time
schedule is strictly followed.
(ii) One of the Addl. Deputy Commissioners at
Headquarters should be designated by the Deputy Commissioners as Nodal Officer
for monitoring the progress of Disbursement of relief in the District and reporting
the same to the Government and to the Divisional Commissioner every Monday. His
name, designation, Telephone Nos. (both office and Residence) should be
intimated to the Government.
XVIII. AVOIDING OF MISTAKES POINTED OUT BY
EARLIER AUDIT PARTIES
Audit Parties sent by Accountant General,
Punjab for conducting Audit of the disbursement of relief on account of Natural
Calamities have generally pointed out the following type of objections :-
i) While disbursing of relief, 1and ceiling
imposed by Govt. is not strictly followed leading to excess payment.
ii)
Assessment
lists are not properly maintained.
iii) Registers regarding account of
disbursement accounts are not properly maintained.
iv) Disbursement certificates in respect of
relief disbursed are not sent promptly to Accountant General (Audit).
v) Audited and certified figures of
expenditure are not sent in time, resulting in delay in the reconciliation of
accounts.
The Deputy Commissioners should that
the ensure assessment record is properly maintained and is made available to
whenever asked for. They should also
ensure that the audit objections pointed out above and also those indicated in
the earlier audit notes are not repeated.
Apart from the supervision by Sub
Divisional Officers (Civil), Deputy Commissioners and Divisional Commissioners,
the following Head-quarter Officers have also been deputed to carry out the
required touring the districts assigned to them Deputy for help and
coordination vis-a-vis the Commissioners the regarding the relief operations,
Government Instructions on the subject and bringing any difficulties being
experienced by them to the notice of the State Government for remedial action:
1.
Shri
S.R.Bunger, IAS, Special Secretary, Ropar,
Patiala
Relief & Resettlement. Sangrur
and Bhatinda.
2.
S.Pritam
Singh, IAS, Ludhiana,
Faridkot
Director, Consolidation & Land and Ferozepur
Acquisition, Punjab.
3.
Shri
V.I.K.Sharma, IAS, Director, Jalandhar,
Kapurthala
Land Records, Punjab, Jalandhar. and Hoshiarpur
4. Sh.
Joginder Pal Singh Puri Gurdaspur
& Amritsar
Director,
Relief & Resettlement
You are requested to implement the
foregoing instructions in letter and spirit and ensure proper compliance with these
instructions by all officers put on Flood Relief Duty. This may please be
attended to on Top-Priority basis.
Sd/-
TEJENDER KHANNA
Financial Commissioner,
Revenue, Punjab, Chandigarh.