Over Rs 150 crore sanctioned for handling COVID-19: Assam govt

In a written reply to a query by Congress MLA Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Jogen Mohan said his department has sanctioned a total of Rs 150,81,36,000 so far. "There is no fund named 'CM Care' in Assam. Out of this amount, Rs 12,64,12,000 has been released for the three districts of the Barak valley," Mohan said.

The Assam government said on Monday that it has sanctioned over Rs 150 crore for tackling the COVID-19 pandemic. In a written reply to a query by Congress MLA Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Jogen Mohan said his department has sanctioned a total of Rs 150,81,36,000 so far.

"There is no fund named 'CM Care' in Assam. Out of this amount, Rs 12,64,12,000 has been released for the three districts of the Barak valley," Mohan said. During the lockdown, the government collected fines of Rs 2.7 crore from motorists for breaking the rules, the minister informed the House while replying to a separate question by Congress legislator Rekibuddin Ahmed.

On August 29, Finance and Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had announced that the state will withdraw a host of freebies given to COVID-19 patients as it is facing financial stress due to huge expenditures in handling the pandemic.