Missing in disasters: Himachal explores faster death declarations for relief
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Friday said the government is exploring the possibility of devising a mechanisms to allow faster declaration of death in case of missing persons during natural disasters as it is emotionally traumatising for the affected families.
He was intervening on the issue of grant of ex-gratia to families of people missing in disaster raised by Rampur MLA during question hour in the Vidhan Sabha. He admitted that providing financial relief in the form of ex-gratia to the families of persons missing in natural disasters is a major challenge for the government as they cannot be considered dead till seven years after they went missing.
“It is often seen that many bodies decompose and are never recovered after cloudbursts and similar tragedies, making it emotionally difficult for the families,” CM remarked.
Replying to the query, Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi said during the last two years upto July 31, 2024, a total of 41 people have been missing during disasters in Himachal. He said 22 individuals missing in the recent rain-triggered tragedies in Bagipul, Samej (Kullu), and Padhar (Mandi) could not be declared dead for seven years, as per the Central Birth and Death Registration Act.
He pointed out that in extreme events like the 2013 Uttarakhand tragedy, the Registrar General, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India issued a procedure for registration of deaths of missing persons in natural calamity affected areas. This procedure was also prescribed for the State of Himachal Pradesh post 2023 flood by the Government of India.
Negi said the government can provide the gratuitous relief to families of people missing in natural disasters from the State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF) and National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF) only after the issuance of the Death Certificate.
Negi said the Section 111 of Bhartiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 prescribes procedure for declaring a missing person dead. “It provides that when the question is whether a person is alive or dead, and it is proved that he has not been heard for seven years by those who would naturally have heard him if he had been alive, the burden of proving that he is alive is shifted to the person who affirms it,” Negi said citing the rules.
