Centre Modifies Norms Of Assistance To Contain Coronavirus

New Delhi: The Centre has apprised all states including, Odisha and the Union Territories, of the partial modification in the list of items and norms of assistance from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) the Union Territory Disaster Response Fund (UTDRF) for containment of COVID-19 virus in the country.

In a letter to all chief secretaries on Saturday, joint secretary, Disaster Management Division of the Home Ministry Sanjeev Kumar Jindal has mentioned the following modifications in the list of items and the norms of assistance.

—For quarantine, sample collection and screening, the state executive committee (SEC), to ensure the effective containment of outbreak for a period up to 30 days, will decide the number of quarantine camps, their duration and the number of persons in such camps. This period can be extended by the SEC beyond the prescribed limit subject to the condition that expenditure on this account should not exceed 25 per cent of the SDRF allocation for the year. Besides, medical care may also be provided from National Health Mission (NHM).

—For the procurement of essential equipment and laboratories, the expenditure is to be incurred from SDRF only (and not from NDRF), as assessed by the SEC to strengthen the surveillance and control measures against the outbreak of the virus. The total expenditure on equipment should not exceed 10 per cent of the annual allocation of the SDRF.

—The SEC shall ensure overall oversight mechanism so that no duplication takes place with reference to other government schemes.

—Any amount spent by the state for COVID-19, over and above the ceiling, would be borne out of the resources of the state government and not from the SDRF.