Government releases additional 3.3 billion drams for earthquake zone

Government releases additional 3.3 billion drams for earthquake zone
ARKA, 20.04.2010

The Armenian government has released additional 3.3 billion Drams to finance construction of residential compounds in Armenia’s second largest town of Gyumri and other towns and villages in the so-called disaster zone that was razed to ground by a 1988 earthquake, urban planning minister Vardan Vardanian told a news conference today.

He said initially 1056 apartments had been planned to be build by May, but the date was postponed until June after president Serzh Sargsyan recently visited the area, instructing the ministry to pay a greater attention to connecting new homes to the natural gas network, installing heating systems and so on.

The 2010 budget earmarks 24 billion Drams for the disaster zone. The minister said the extra release of 3.3 billion Drams will be spent to eliminate the shortcomings found by the president. Vardan Vardanian said also construction of schools will be launched in the area from mid-May.

‘We are planning to complete construction of housing for homeless people in 2013. Currently we have a list of 7,000 such families,’ he said.

The 1998 December 7 earthquake razed to ground Gyumri and Spitak, and over 100 rural communities, killing, according to government figures, 25,000 people and injuring 140,000. Half a million people lost their homes. ($1- 394.24 Drams). -0-