Modi vows $120m for flood-hit Kashmir

SRINAGAR: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday announced a 7.5 billion rupee ($120m) relief package for flood-hit Kashmir as his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seeks to expand support beyond the mainly Hindu lowlands of Jammu.

Modi's visit to the flood affected state on Diwali '“ the Indian festival of lights '“ comes in the buildup to elections in Jammu and Kashmir by later this year.

Hundreds were killed and thousands of villages were devastated by the worst flooding in decades in the Kashmir valley, a mainly Muslim region with a history of separatist violence.

Modi announced 5.7bn rupees in assistance for housing and 1.8bn rupees to fix six major hospitals in the state that are in poor condition and need immediate federal support. 'India shares the grief of Jammu and Kashmir. The government stands with the people in rehabilitation efforts,' Modi said.

Modi last month announced a first round of central assistance of 10bn rupees for the state.

Yesterday's relief package is a fraction of the state's demand for a package of around 150bn rupees for 350,000 structures, including more than 250,000 houses damaged in the floods.

'We were expecting more from the prime minister. What is it? Just, peanuts. The loss due to floods is huge. It is a cruel joke for us people,' Mushtaq Ahmad, whose house collapsed in the floods, said.