Shimla, September 11 (PTI) Rain-affected people staying in relief camps would be provided temporary accommodation whose rent would be provided by the state government, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Monday.

The chief minister's announcement came while he was presiding over a meeting with officials here. He said provision would be made to rent two-room and three-room sets, adding that instructions have been issued to all the Deputy Commissioners in this regard.

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Directing officials to expedite the repair of roads and retaining walls in Shimla damaged due to heavy rains, Sukhu said Rs 10 crore would be released for the maintenance and repair of damaged roads under the purview of the Municipal Corporation of Shimla.

Heavy rains during the ongoing monsoon season wreaked havoc in the hill state, triggering 164 major landslides and 72 flash floods since the onset of monsoon on June 24 till September 10, according to the state emergency operation centre.

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The state suffered losses of Rs 8,678 crore including losses of Rs 2,119 crore to the Public Works Department. As many as 2,522 house were completely damaged while 10,920 houses were partially damaged. About 268 persons were killed in rain-related incidents, the centre said.

Reviewing the implementation of various development schemes of the state government, Sukhu asked officials to speed up the work on such programmes, a statement issued here on Monday said.

He said that Artificial Intelligence (AI) related courses will be started in all the engineering colleges of the state from the next academic session.

The Chief Minister added that the implementation of schemes for self-employment in the fisheries sector should be ensured from a scientific perspective.

He also directed officials to review the progress of the construction work of heliports on a weekly basis.

He said there was immense potential for jackfruit cultivation in the state and that the Agriculture Department should encourage farmers to cultivate jackfruit.

Sukhu also gave directions to develop an effective online system that would allow users to apply for fitness certificates for vehicles and related appointments.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)