By IANS,
Mumbai : Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh Saturday announced a relief package of Rs.25 million for the Bihar flood victims.
In an official statement, the state government said the relief package would consist of Rs.15 million worth of essential materials and the rest would be in cash.
Deshmukh, who convened an emergency meeting over the issue Saturday, said that since Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has termed the floods in the Kosi river of Bihar as a national calamity, it was the duty of Maharashtra to aid the affected people.
He mentioned that Railway Minister Lalu Prasad had Friday written a letter to him and spoken over the phone, soliciting aid for the flood victims.
The chief minister also directed the relief and rehabilitation department to take the lead in rushing relief materials to Bihar and convene a meeting of pharmaceutical companies for medical supplies.