Flood relief material from abroad exempted from customs duty, GST: Goyal
New Delhi, Aug 21 : Finance, Coal and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the relief material coming from foreign countries for distribution in flood-ravaged Kerala have been exempted from the customs duty and the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
"The government is committed to help Kerala in this time of devastation," Goyal told the media here.
"...we have made all the relief materials coming from foreign countries for the Kerala flood relief exempt from customs duty as well as GST," he said.
On August 18, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Rs 500-crore financial assistance to the state.
Earlier, Home Minister Rajnath Singh during his visit to state also announced a financial assistance of Rs 100 crore.
Following the devastating floods, over one million people are now sheltered in 3,274 relief camps in the state. The death toll during this monsoon season is estimated at around 370.
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Fire breaks out in residential building in east Delhi, nine killed
New Delhi (PTI): At least nine people were killed after a fire broke out in a residential building in east Delhi's Vivek Vihar early Sunday, officials said.
The incident was reported around 3.48 am at a four-storey building in Vivek Vihar Phase-I, following which police, fire and disaster management teams rushed to the spot.
According to the police, the blaze engulfed flats on the second, third and fourth floors of the building, prompting a large-scale rescue operation.
The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.
"Around 10 to 15 people were rescued from the premises during the firefighting operation. Two of them, who sustained minor injuries, were shifted to the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital," a senior police officer said.
A total of 12 fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the flames, while teams from the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), traffic police and local police assisted in the rescue and evacuation efforts.
Police said the fire was brought under control after several hours.
The identities of the deceased are yet to be ascertained, and efforts are underway to determine the cause of the fire, police said.
Further investigation and proceedings are underway.
