Prime Minister of India - Dr. Manmohan Singh

June 3, 2005

I have been overwhelmed by the generous response of our people to efforts to raise funds for Tsunami relief and rehabilitation. The flow of contributions to the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund so far has been unprecedented. These funds have helped in providing relief and succour to the victims of the disaster. Our Government is committed to rebuilding lives and livelihoods and offering a new ray of hope to the survivors of this disaster.

- Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, January 2005

I: The Disaster

The Nation will never forget the day of 26th December, 2004 when the deadly tsunami triggered by an earthquake of magnitude 8.6 off  the coast of Sumatra snatched away thousands of precious lives and caused huge damage to the agriculture, livestock and infrastructure.  The Nation shared the grief alongwith other countries in the Indian Ocean namely – Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Thailand for more than 3,00,000 human lives lost of which 12,405: 107 in Andhra Pradesh, 177 in Kerala, 8009 in Tamil Nadu, 599 in Pondicherry and 3513 in Andaman  & Nicobar Islands were in India. 14 Indians abroad; 13 in Sri Lanka and 1 in Maldives also lost their lives. The tsunami tidal waves traveled at a speed of 700-800 km per hour and reached as far as the coast of Africa. The Nicobar Group of Islands being in the immediate vicinity of the Sumatra coast suffered maximum damage. The coral reefs, the beautiful coastline, the agriculture and coconut plants were all washed away.

            For the country, the tsunami disaster was unheard of. It was unprecedented in its intensity, magnitude and spread, which extended from the Andaman & Nicobar Islands in the heart of the Indian Ocean 1400 Kms away from the mainland, to the coastal States of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and the Union Territory of Pondicherry. All previous major disasters namely – the 1993 earthquake of Latur, the 1999 super cyclone of Orissa and the 2001 earthquake of Gujarat  were confined to the respective States only.

 A total of 27.92 lakh people: 1.96 lakh in Andhra Pradesh, 13.00 lakh in Kerala, 8.97 lakh in Tamil Nadu, 0.43 lakh in Pondicherry and 3.56 lakh in A & N Islands were affected in 1,089 villages.  The tsunami destroyed over 2.35 lakh dwelling units; 481 in Andhra Pradesh, 13735 in Kerala, 1,90,000 in Tamil Nadu, 10061 in Pondicherry and 21,100 in A & N Islands. Apart from their homes people lost their livelihoods-83,788 boats; were damaged; 39,035 hectares of cropped area: 302 ha. in Andhra Pradesh, 7763 ha  in Kerala, 19168 ha. in Tamil Nadu, 792 ha.  in  Pondicherry and 11,010 in A & N Islands and  31,755 livestock were lost. The social infrastructure of schools, primary health centres, drinking water supply, anganwadis, and other community assets in these areas was totally destroyed. There was widespread damage to the  infrastructure including the shipping sector particularly in the Islands where harbours and jetties which were the lifelines to the Islands, were destroyed; as also to the roads and bridges, power and communication. In monetary terms, the damage was estimated at about Rs.11,544.91 crore - Rs. 342.67 crore  in Andhra Pradesh, Rs. 2371.02 crore  in Kerala, Rs.4528.66 crore  in Tamil Nadu, Rs. 466.00 crore in Pondicherry and Rs. 3836.56 crore in Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

II: The Response

             The Government of India immediately got in touch with the affected States and launched relief and rescue operations on a scale which had never been undertaken in the past.  Two aircraft – for reconnaissance and relief – were airborne within one hour of the information being  received.  The Government of India also decided to assist the neighbouring countries of  Sri Lanka, Maldives and Indonesia which were badly hit by the Tsunami. The National Crisis Management Committee was activated and met within three hours to review the immediate measures which had been taken. The strategy to deal with the disaster was clearly defined - immediate relief and response; to be followed by temporary rehabilitation, sustenance to the affected families and revival of means of livelihood. This was to be  further followed by a long term plan for rehabilitation and reconstruction.

              An  immediate recce of the tsunami affected areas from Islands to mainland was undertaken for impact assessment and the Government of India released Rs.700 crore, for carrying out immediate relief and response, to the affected States and Union Territories; which included Rs.250 crore for Tamil Nadu , Rs.100 crore for Andhra Pradesh,  Rs.100 crore for Kerala , Rs.50 crore – for Pondicherry and Rs.200 crore for Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Central teams were deputed to all the States and Union Territories not only for on the spot damage assessment and requirement of funds but also to understand the problem areas and know the needs of the people for immediate relief.  For Andaman & Nicobar Islands, an Integrated Relief Command (IRC) under the Lt. Governor was set up for effective coordination of relief and rescue operations undertaken jointly by the military and civil administration.

              Massive search and rescue operation were launched with the help of the Armed Forces. These were supported by the Central Para-military Forces and the two Medical First Responders (MFR) specially trained teams of the Ministry of Home Affairs. In all, 20,907 personnel; 8,300 from Army, 5,500 from Navy; 3000 from Air Force; 2000 from Coast Guard and 2107 from CPMF and 40 Ships, 34 Aircrafts and 42 Helicopters were deployed for search and rescue. Such coordinated operations on such a large scale had never been undertaken in the history of the country. The immediate concerns were  search and rescue of marooned and stranded persons; evacuating people to safer places;  providing temporary shelter and relief camps. The retrieval and disposal of dead bodies posed a major challenge.  

A total of  28,734 people were rescued - 9500 from Tamil Nadu, 9950  from Kerala and 9284 from A & N Islands. Nearly one thousand persons were stranded on the Vivekanand Rock Memorial. They had to be rescued initially by helicopters and thereafter by large boats. The operations continued overnight.  A total of 6.47 lakh people were evacuated to safer places. The  Ministry of Civil Aviation operated 64 special flights between the 27th December and the 1st of January, 2005 to evacuate 6,318 stranded people including tourists from the A & N Islands to the mainland.

Retrieval and disposal of dead bodies was an immediate requirement.  Personnel from Central Para-military Forces and employees from the Municipal Corporation  of Mumbai were detailed to the worst affected areas in Tamil Nadu and to the Islands to assist in the retrieval and disposal of dead bodies. The quick disposal helped in early sanitization and prevention of any subsequent epidemics.

A total of 930 relief camps were set up to house 6.04 lakh people. Arrangements were made for food, drinking water, clothing,  sanitation and  medical assistance in the relief camps. Arrangements were also made for special nutrition for infants (baby food).  People continued in the relief camps for over two months in the mainland and  for about five months in the Islands. Out of the thirteen affected Islands, six were totally evacuated and the affected people moved to neighbouring Islands/Port Blair or the mainland.

Logistics was a major challenge. All relief supplies to the Islands including drinking water had to be transported 1400 km by sea or air. Simultaneously, supplies were also required for the mainland States. Roads, Hospitals, Power, Telecom, Schools and Infrastructure in the A & N Islands had been practically destroyed.  Drinking water was not available due to the destruction of the sources in many of the affected Islands. The Government of India, therefore, with the support of the State Governments set up 8 hubs for relief supplies; located  at Bhuj, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Bhopal, Mumbai, Bhubaneswar, Kolkata and Bangalore. The procurement of relief supplies was assigned to them and from there these were airlifted to the Islands and also to the neighbouring countries. The total supplies mobilized and transported during the emergency phase of relief and response were to the extent of 8,890 Metric Tonne including 6,830 Metric Tonne to A & N Islands. This included 724 MT of water; 742 MT of food stuff, 260 MT of clothing, over 10,000 tents; 715 generators; and medicines, pumpsets, bailey bridges and desalination plants. The mobilization and transportation of the relief material was a herculean task. On one hand, while there was  a continous and daily  need assessment, on the other hand there was simultaneously coordination with the Armed Forces for airlift and transportation material. Two officers were stationed at Chennai and Kolkata for logistics coordination.

Teams from the Ministry of Health were deputed immediately to mainland States/UT as also to the Islands. A total of 1369 medical teams were deployed from the Centre and the States. It was ensured that there was no outbreak of any epidemic due to the disaster.

The Government also extended relief assistance to the tsunami affected countries of Sri Lanka, Maldives, Thailand and Indonesia.  In case of Sri Lanka a composite relief package of Rs.100 crore was announced. Indian Navy launched “Operation Rainbow” to provide relief and rescue assistance to Sri Lanka.  Seven Indian Navy ships with integrated helicopters and medical teams were deployed. This included one specialist hospital ship.  An Army field hospital was also deployed.  Apart from providing immediate relief, the Indian relief teams carried out  repair of essential infrastructure, cleared and restored water supply sources and provided Generator sets and other clearing equipment for restoration of communication. Indian Air Force IL-76 aircrafts, MI and Chetak helicopters were engaged in relief operations.

For Maldives a composite relief package of Rs. 5 crore was announced. Under “Operation Castor” for Maldives, 50 sorties were undertaken and four aircrafts and two Naval ships were engaged in relief operations.  An assistance of US $ 5 lakh in kind was approved by Government of India for Thailand. US $ 1 million immediate aid in kind to Indonesia was announced by India.  “Operation Gambhir” was launched by the Indian Navy to provide relief assistance to Indonesia.  An Indian Navy hospital ship with emergency medical supplies and other relief materials was deployed. One more ship was converted into hospital and IAF aircrafts carried out relief sorties. In the wake of earthquake, which struck Indonesia Island of Nias off Sumatra on 28th March,2005, the  Government of India provided assistance of  US $ 2 million.  

            The operations were carried out and monitored by the National Disaster Management Division in the Ministry of Home Affairs which worked around the clock. The Ministry of Home Affairs, the Nodal Ministry remained in constant touch with all the States and Union Territories and priorities for relief and response were set as per their requirement and the situation on ground. This was supported by the Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) Operations Room of the Ministry of Defence in providing logistic support of the Armed Forces. The emergency support functions were also provided by other line Ministries/Departments of the Government of India like Telecommunications, Power, Road Transport and Highways, Shipping, Drinking Water Supply and Health. Senior Officers were deputed by the Ministry of Home Affairs to the affected States  for  liaison.  A Group of Officers who had earlier worked in the islands were deputed to the A& N Islands to help coordinate the relief effort there.

III: The Rehabilitation  

            The restoration of essential infrastructure – Transport; Tele-communications; Power and Water Supply were of immediate concern. Most drinking water sources in the Islands were destroyed or contaminated. In the first phase, all drinking water for  the affected Islands had to be transported from the mainland. The Department of Drinking Water Supply deputed its teams for desalination and decontamination of the affected sources and  restoration of drinking water supply. Teams of engineers and technicians from the Ministry of Telecommunications were deputed along with the equipment to restore the communication links.  Satellite phones were also provided to the Islands for inter-Island connectivity. Teams from the Ministry of Power were deputed to restore the power supply by repairing the existing plant in the Islands. Immediate power supply to the camp and other vital installation was provided by diesel Generator sets.

Most of the jetties/harbours of the Islands were damaged, leaving these Islands  accessible only by helicopters.  While all relief to these Islands had to be transported by helicopters in the first phase, the work for immediate repair/restoration of jetties was taken up on a war footing.  Temporary jetties were set up, using pontoons. Where this was not possible, beaching sites were located, using LCTs of the Navy, and these were used to transship the relief material. Hospital ships  were  parked offshore , to provide specialized medical attention to the affected people. The Ports of the mainland were made functional within 24 hours.

The long distances and inaccessibility of areas posed a great challenge both  for undertaking the relief operations and the restoration of essential infrastructure.  However, experts worked relentlessly and brought normalcy immediately in the mainland. It took sometime in case of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands where the Islands were inaccessible. The Island chain of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands is 724 km which itself posed the command and coordination challenges. The Armed Forces played a very vital and crucial roles in not only undertaking relief and rescue operations but also helping in restoring connectivity. The Car Nicobar Air Force base which itself was damaged and where 116 officers, servicemen and their family members were swept away by the sea, was made functional within hours and landing operations started without the technical equipment support. It was a matter of great satisfaction that the entire machinery both at the National and State level acted in cohesion and their efforts were appreciated by one and all.

The National Crisis Management Committee of the Secretaries under the Cabinet Secretary continuously reviewed and monitored the national efforts. They were guided by the Group of Ministers (GoM) under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister which met every day and steered the disaster management efforts. The Prime Minister, the Home Minister and the Defence Minister immediately visited the affected areas. They were followed by other Union Ministers. The chairperson of the UPA  and the Leaders of all major Political Parties and the Members of Parliament also visited the affected areas. The feed-back from the representatives of the people and the civil society helped in shaping the disaster management strategies. Monitoring of relief and rehabilitation efforts by the Government have been continuous and ongoing. 

            The tsunami disaster had typical characteristics. The fishermen community along the coastline  were worst affected.  About 75% of the lives lost were of women and children. 480 children (Andhra Pradesh.– 6; Kerala –3, Tamil Nadu-289, Pondicherry-39, Andaman & Nicobar Islands-143) became orphans and 787 women: 18 in Andhra Pradesh, 31 in Kerala, 562 in Tamil Nadu, 28 in Pondicherry and 148 in Andaman & Nicobar Islands lost their husbands.  There were unmarried girls of above 18 years of age who had lost both their parents. These social dimensions of the problem were of concern. The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment coordinated the care and rehabilitation of the orphan children, unmarried girls and widows.  In the A & N Islands; in keeping with their tradition; the tribal community decided that they would care for and support the orphan children belonging to their tribe.  In other cases, their care was ensured through State run orphanages; and where suitable, their relatives.  The trauma which these vulnerable children and women have undergone was overcome with the emotional support of the relatives and the community and the solace and support provided by the Government both at the National and State level.

            Based on the assessment of the Central teams which were deputed to affected States/UTs special package totalling to Rs.3644.05 crore named as “Rajiv Gandhi Rehabilitation Package for Tsunami affected areas” has been approved which covers assistance for immediate relief and response, revival of fishery and agriculture sectors, immediate construction of temporary (intermediate) shelters and repair/restoration of infrastructure. Out of this, Rs.2036.95 crore have been approved  for immediate relief and response which includes ex-gratia to the next of the kin of the deceased; expenditure for setting up and  running of relief camps, clothes and utensils, sustenance allowance; immediate water supply and relief employment.

Apart from the ex-gratia payment approved under the Rajiv Gandhi Special Package, additional ex-gratia payment of Rs. 1 lakh to the next of the kin of the deceased was announced from the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund and Rs.50,000 from the respective Chief Ministers Relief Fund. The guidelines for payment of ex-gratia in respect of missing persons were simplified to enable immediate support to the   surviving members of the family In addition, in the case of A & N Islands, Rs. 2 lakh have been provided additionally to each orphan to be kept in a bank account and given to him or her on attaining the age of maturity. The Government of India has provided the full amount of Rs.1 lakh of ex-gratia to the next of the kin in the Islands besides Rs.1 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund.  Similarly, unmarried girls and widows have been supported with the financial aid of Rs.1 lakh each. Sustenance allowance has been approved for each of the affected family for a period of three months in the mainland and for six months in the Islands at Rs.155.19 crore. 93,000 MT of food-grains valued at Rs. 93.00 crore were allotted for relief employment which would generate 1.86 crore mandays.

For intermediate rehabilitation, the Government of India supported construction of temporary (intermediate) shelters at a cost of Rs.212.84 crore. A total of 39,171 intermediate shelters have been constructed in the States/UTs. Of these,  9,572 intermediate shelters were constructed in the A & N Islands. This posed special logistic challenges. The material for construction had to be transported almost entirely from the mainland.  This involved moving approximately 15,000 MT of CGI Sheets, Poles and other such material by train and then by ship to the Islands. This huge logistic task was completed well before the onset of the monsoon.  Almost all the shelters have been occupied.

            The fishermen community along the coastline bore the brunt of the otherwise friendly sea when they lost not only their near and dear ones but also their means of livelihood. Therefore, the Rajiv Gandhi  Special Package included Rs.1199.85 crore for rehabilitation of fishermen. This not only covered the replacement of lost assets in terms of boats and nets or their repair wherever necessary, but   also support – where the fishermen so desired - for upgrading their boats to fibre/motorised boats. 

 The norms for assistance to fishermen under the  special package are as under:

Note: Fishermen covered by the package indicated in paragraph (a) will have the option to opt for the package indicated in paragraph (b) above.

With the support of Banks, loans  were organised  at a low interest rate of  7% per annum. In addition, interest subsidy of 2% will be paid in case of prompt repayment. The moratorium for the loan payment will be one and a half years and repayment period will be seven years after that.  Affected fishermen will be entitled to get loans, even if earlier loans are outstanding.  

Replacement and reconstruction of boats on such a large scale required  special efforts for organizing the material  and production facilities; particularly for fibre glass boats. The logs for the wooden boats were also in short supply and had to be arranged from other States. After herculean efforts, these have been tied up. As a result, there  has been considerable progress on this front.  So far, in Tamil Nadu, Rs.33.12 crore have been provided as subsidy for replacement of catamaran boats plus nets for 11657 units. For repair of 12715 boats, a subsidy of Rs.14.18 crore was given to the fishermen. Further for out-board motors, in-board engines and for damage caused to fishing equipment a subsidy of Rs.45.86 crore has been disbursed.  For mechanised boats and nets, a subsidy of Rs.39.01 crore  and  loan of Rs.8.49 crore has been given in 254 cases. In Pondicherry, subsidy of Rs.13.92 crore has been provided for replacement of catamaran boats for 5389 units.  Subsidy of Rs.8.01 crore has also been provided for 801 motor boats. For mechanized boats, subsidy of Rs.8.19 crore has been given for 221 units. Similarly, 234 mechanised boats have been repaired with a grant of Rs.7.65 crore. In Andaman & Nicobar Islands, 225 partial damaged boats have been repaired so far and orders for 324 boats have been given for replacement. In Kerala, 471 catamaran boats have been replaced and 553 repaired with a subsidy of Rs.0.98 crore. 63 engine fitted boats have been replaced and 581 repaired with the assistance of Rs.1.11 crore. 146 out-board motors have been replaced and 199 repaired with an assitance of Rs.1.71 crore.  Rs.3.95 crore have also been provided for nets. In Andhra Pradesh, 211 traditional boats have been replaced and 4095 repaired with subsidy of Rs.2.67 crore.  52 engine fitted boats have been replaced and 2111 repaired with assistance of Rs.1.85 crore. An amount of Rs.7.69 crore has also been provided for replacing fishing nets.

The Rajiv Gandhi Special Package also includes Rs.1607.10 crore for permanent housing and immediate repair of damaged infrastructure. Out of this, an amount of Rs.752.30 crore has been earmarked for permanent housing.  This amount will be a grant from the Government of India  for the permanent housing plan being finalized by the Core Group in the Planning Commission. In case of A & N Islands, Ministry of Urban Development have finalized a project proposal of Rs.656 core for construction of 9350 multi-hazard proof houses with proper town planning and civic amenities. The designs and lay out have been prepared in consultation with the beneficiaries.

The State-wise break up of the Rajiv Gandhi Special Package is: Tamil Nadu Rs.2347.19 crore, Andhra Pradesh – Rs.70.00 crore, Kerala – Rs. 249.36 crore, Pondicherry – Rs.155.62 crore, and Andaman & Nicobar Islands – Rs.821.88 crore.

The Nation stood firmly with the people affected by the tsunami.  The national response was overwhelming and the States which were not affected came forward to provide all support to the National efforts by the Central Government.  All political parties, the media and civil society organizations came forward to contribute to the National effort.  A sum of over Rs.800 crores was received as contribution to the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund.

IV: The Reconstruction

Government of India believe that this terrible calamity has also left in its wake an opportunity to put in place a level of infrastructure and services in the affected areas of a level which would be far higher than that destroyed by the Tsunami. With this in view, the Government of India have set up a Core Group on Reconstruction, Management and Monitoring for Tsunami affected areas in the Planning Commission.  The Crore Group has prepared a comprehensive plan for rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Tsunami affected States/UTs, with a financial outlay of Rs.9870.25 crore:which includes  Rs.4,084.79 crore  for Tamil Nadu, Rs.1,470.46 crore for Kerala, Rs.138.11 crore  for Andhra Pradesh, Rs.487.44 crore  for Pondicherry, Rs.2,614.22 crore  for Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Rs.775.23 crore  for Shipping sector.  

 The sector-wise financial outlays include: 34% of the  total  outlay, i.e. Rs. Rs.3,298.71 crore on housing, internal infrastructure(water distribution, sewerage,  roads, power distribution and village level water & sewerage); 15% i.e. Rs. 1,519.42 crore on livelihood which includes Agriculture, Fisheries and Social Welfare programmes; 38% i.e Rs.3,773.53 crore  on  medium/long-term reconstruction covering ports & jetties, roads & bridges, power & communication, tourism and social infrastructure and 9%  i.e Rs.828.59 crore on environmental/coastal protection measures.  The sources of funding for the programme are Rajiv Gandhi rehabilitation Package  (Rs.1607.01 crore), External Multilateral Agencies (Rs.3,610.35 crore), while the support for the balance amount of Rs.4,652.89 crore  is likely to be through the internal resources. The programme is proposed to be implemented over three years ending March 31, 2008.  The Implementing Agencies for the programme would be the respective States/UTs and Central Ministries/Departments.

The long term rehabilitation plan includes permanent housing at a cost of Rs.3014.39 crore for 1.51 lakh houses. Of this amount Rs.752.30 crore will come as grant from Government of India and the remaining amount has been tied up from the World Bank and ADB.  The permanent houses will be multi-hazard proof and constructed with appropriate town planning and civic amenities keeping in view the coastal zone regulations.  The revival of agriculture  and animal husbandry sector for livelihood has been kept at Rs.375.95 crore.  This will include repair and reconstruction of dykes, site clearance, scrapping of surface salt, application of organic matter, application of gypsum, rainwater harvesting through check dams, creation of water bodies-pond/well, pump sets, cropping programme, creation of drainage facility, farm implements/equipments.

 Whereas no external assistance was required for immediate relief and response, Government approved external assistance from multi-lateral agencies like World Bank (WB), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and UN Agencies for long term rehabilitation/ reconstruction for Tsunami affected States/UTs.  Bi-lateral assistance was also to be accepted if routed through the multi lateral agencies. 

            The external assistance tied up from World Bank is US $528.5 million, ADB US $200 million, IFD US$ 30 million and 7.50 US million from Japan Fund routed through World Bank and ADB.  A further assistance of 38.80 million US $ is under negotiation.  The support from World Bank is for rural water supply rehabilitation in Kerala, livelihood restoration in Andhra Pradesh, and housing and transport infrastructure restoration in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry and support studies for longer-term coastal management. ADB is providing funds for rehabilitation of transportation infrastructure, village infrastructure and livelihood restoration in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. US$ 2.5 million is being provided to each State from the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction.

V: The Road Ahead

            Before the Tsunami, the country did not have any system to give a warning about the impending Tsunami disaster. The Government have now decided to set up a Tsunami Early Warning System in the Indian Ocean on its own.  The Department of Ocean Development has been identified as the nodal agency to set up the Early Warning System, with active participation from (a) Department of Science and Technology, (b) Department of Space, (c) Council of Scientific and Industrial Research and (d) Universities/Departments. With the commencement of the Project, operational warnings of Tsunamis and Storm surges with their likely landfall inundation could be provided by September, 2007. The System once in place in about 2 years at a cost of Rs.125 crore, will also provide assistance to other countries in the Indian Ocean region.  Technical know how and information sharing are a part of the collaborative arrangement with International agencies.  The Government will be seeking necessary technical collaboration from abroad wherever required including UN agencies.   The policy is that we will not like to be a part of the consortium of other countries for setting up a Tsunami Early Warning System in the Indian Ocean.

            As a part of long term strategy for Disaster Management, the Bill on Central Law on Disaster Management has been introduced in the Parliament on 11th May, 2005. The Bill provides that the States/UTs would be integral part of the Disaster Management system in the country.  Pending the enactment of the law, it is proposed to set up a National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) through an executive order. The Central Law once enacted will help in strengthening the institutional arrangements for effective Disaster Management besides accountability and responsibility for the assigned task to different authorities at National, State and District level.

            The Government is committed to providing a safer and a higher quality life to its people. It will be the endeavour of the Government that on completion of the rehabilitation and reconstruction package, the scars of the Tsunami disaster are replaced by better means of livelihood with modern day civic amenities. The Government renews its support to the people affected by the Tsunami disaster.

Data Tables 

The Devastation

The Response

* : Denotes Number of flights

Immediate Relief

Rajiv Gandhi Rehabilitation Package (Rs. Crore)

Estimated Total Package for Tsunami Relief, Rehabilitation Reconstruction

Maps of Relief Material Hubs (Power Point file)