Thrissur: Kerala Revenue Minister K Rajan on Wednesday said that the blast at a fireworks manufacturing unit at Mundathicode in this district a day ago, which claimed at least 13 lives, has been declared as a state-specific disaster. Addressing a press conference here, he said the decision was taken in a special online cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the morning in the wake of the blast.
He said that it was also decided to provide a financial assistance of Rs 14 lakh to the dependents of those who died in the blast.
He said that directions have been issued to the state executive committee of the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) to declare the blast as a state-specific disaster.
Besides these, the government also announced a judicial probe into the incident and said a single-member commission comprising Justice C N Ramachandran Nair will carry out the investigation.
Regarding the Rs 14 lakh financial assistance to dependents of those who died in the blast, the minister said that Rs four lakh would be paid from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and the remaining Rs 10 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund (CMDRF).
The injured will be given the amount allowed under the SDRF and in addition, Rs 2 lakh will be provided as emergency financial assistance from the CMDRF, he said.
He further said that the Cabinet also decided the government will bear the medical expenses of the injured in government and private hospitals for the next 6 months and the amount required for it will be allocated from the CMDRF as recommended by the District Collector.
Additionally, the medical assistance will also include the permissible amount from the SDRF.
If the treatment is required for more than six months, based on recommendations of a medical board, the amount for treatment in private hospitals will be allocated from the CMDRF, the minister said at the press meet, which was also attended by ministers M B Rajesh and V N Vasavan.
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