State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) is administered as per the recommendations of the successive Finance Commissions set up under the Article 280 of the Constitution of India. Financial assistance is provided to State Government from SDRF as per the established procedure, for meeting the expenditure on relief provided to people affected by any of the 12 notified disasters.
However, keeping in view the spread of COVID-19 in the country, and declaration of COVID-19 as pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Central Government vide letter dated 14th March 2020, by way of a special one-time dispensation, decided to treat COVID-19 as a notified disaster for the purpose of providing limited assistance under SDRF towards containment measures, on (i) Measures for quarantine, sample collection and screening and (ii) Procurement of essential equipments/ labs for response to COVID-19. Further to deal with problems of migrant labourers, on 28th March, 2020, the Central Government allowed use of SDRF for setting up relief camps and for providing food etc. to homeless people including migrant workers, stranded due to lockdown measures. On 23rd September, 2020, the Central Government further allowed use of SDRF by the States for oxygen generation and storage plants in hospitals; strengthening ambulance services for transport of patients; and setting up containment zones, COVID-19 care centres.
For the containment measures allowed under SDRF, State Governments were allowed to spend upto 35% of the annual allocation of SDRF during the financial year 2019-20. The ceiling of 35% was further enhanced to 50% during the financial year 2020-21. Further, keeping in view the surge in COVID-19 cases in the country, the Central Government, further extended the dispensation allowed to States to utilize upto 50% of their annual allocation of SDRF, for containment measures of COVID-19 during the financial year, 2021-22.
First installment of Central share of SDRF for 2021-22 amounting to Rs. 8873.60 crore has been released in advance to all States on 29th April, 2021.
The limit of expenditure upto 50% of SDRF allocation for COVID-19 containment measures is fixed to ensure that sufficient funds are available with the State Governments to provide relief measures during any notified disasters, for which this statutory fund has been established. The regular funding to deal with COVID-19 has been and continues to be provided to States under the National Health Mission, while assistance from SDRF is allowed to supplement the resources of the State Governments.
This was stated by the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Shri Nityanand Rai in a written reply to question in the Lok Sabha today.
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RK/PK/DDD/AY/262
