Odisha: BJD MLAs, MPs to donate one month’s salary to flood-hit Kerala

Bhubaneswar: All MLAs and MPs of Odisha’s ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) will donate their one-month salary for the relief work in flood-ravaged Kerala, where close to 400 people have died.

“BJD stands firmly with the people of Kerala in these difficult times. The floods have caused damage to the infrastructure of the state. In order to help them, party MLAs and MPs will donate one month salary towards restoration work in neighbouring Kerala,” BJD State General Secretary Bijay Nayak said in a statement.

Rural Development and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Bikram Keshari Arukha has appealed all MLAs and MPs to donate their one month’s salary to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) towards relief work in flood-hit Kerala, the statement added.

Legislators in Odisha draw Rs 35,000 each month as against Rs 1 lakh that they are paid generally.

Notably, the Odisha government has already provided assistance of Rs 10 crore for Kerala from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF), besides 500 tonnes of polythene sheets worth Rs 8 crore for the flood-hit population.

This is the deadliest deluge in Kerala in close to a century, which has claimed around 400 lives since August 8. Further, a body blow has been dealt with the scenic state, with its infrastructure, standing crops and tourism facilities severely hit.