I have come to Gujarat to see for myself the extensive damage caused by the unprecedented floods, particularly in River Tapi. After a seemingly good beginning to the monsoon, the situation seems to havetaken for the worse in the last week; affecting many parts of Gujarat, particularly Central and South Gujarat.

The vibrant industrial city of Surat seems to have been badly affected by the floods caused by River Tapi. The three million residents of this city have been undergoing severe hardship over the last few days. Houses have been completely flooded, people have been stranded, electricity and water supply have stopped, telephone communication has been completely disrupted and road and rail communication have snapped.

The citizens have not been able to get basic food commodities necessary for survival. I sympathize with their plight and feel sorry for them. But we cannot let Surat go under. A decade ago, Surat conquered the plague. I am sure they will face this challenge also. Surat is a vibrant industrial city. It is the diamond hub of India and a center of textile and chemical industry. It is the source of valuable exports.

We will provide all possible assistance to help this city recover fast. The Armed Forces have been playing a gallant role in rescue operations. I also compliment the civil society groups actively engaged in rescue and relief.

Yesterday, the Congress President and the Raksha Mantri visited Surat. An immediate assistance of Rs. 150 crores from the Calamity Relief Fund was announced. I have reviewed the situation and we have decided to immediately release another Rs350 crores from the National Calamity Contingency Fund, taking the total assistance to Rs.500 crores. We will soon be sending a Central team to assess the situation after which further assistance will be announced.

My heart reaches out to the families of those who have lost their near and dear in these floods. We will provide Rs. 1 lakh to each of these families. I pray Surat recovers fast from this trauma. We will stand by it at all times.