Cyclone Tauktae wreaked havoc on the coast of Gujarat, among other Indian states and Union Territories, in May of this year. The initial estimated loss to the state’s fishing industry stands pegged at Rs 160 crore, while experts expect the actual loss is much higher. The Gujarat government released a relief package of Rs 105 crore for the damage caused to fisherfolk, inter alia, to their boats and equipment. The government also announced funding assistance for fisherfolk seeking loans. While the government has set aside Rs 80 crore from the relief package for the restoration and strengthening of port infrastructure along the Jafrabad, Nava Bunder, Saiyad Rajpara and Shiyalbet coasts, only Rs 25 crores has been set aside for monetary relief. Amidst debates over whether the monetary relief is adequate, what has been missing from the discourse are the inadequacies of the announced relief package itself. Severe shortcomings in the package’s design have led to a flood of implementational challenges and roadblocks. The cyclone relief package did not specify the procedure or the documents necessary to determine who would be eligible to receive compensation. A narrow view might make the process seem flexible to ensure that the lack of documents does not exclude otherwise-eligible people from receiving the compensation (especially since many fisherfolk lost their government-issued identity documents due to the cyclone). Also read: Bengal: 3 Months After Amphan, Victims in North 24 Parganas Yet To Get CompensationHowever, this non-transparent process resulted in ration cards being used to determine the eligibility for cash dole assistance and house damage compensation. The National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA) – which shifted from a welfare approach to a rights-based approach to food security – provides for ration cards to be issued by respective state governments. The Gujarat government, after several extensions, implemented the national legislation on food security only in 2016. Thus, the linkage of relief packages to ration cards encountered several problems at the ground level as the existing system and infrastructure for food security in Gujarat is poorly functioning. The poor implementation of the NFSA has adversely affected the relief disbursal of cash dole assistance and house damage compensation for cyclone damages. These problems are compounded by the migratory nature of the work of many fisherfolk communities.Realities of migrant fisherfolk Saiyad Rajpara Dharabandar Vistar is a migrant fisherfolk village in the Una tehsil of Gujarat which fisherfolk communities from the Dharabandar village migrate to for employment. They build houses and huts and stay here during the fishing season, leaving for their village during the monsoons. Also read: Gujarat Fishermen’s Landmark Victory in US Supreme Court Goes Unreported in Indian MediaThese fisherfolk face a unique set of vulnerabilities due to the migratory nature of their work. The inability of the existing systems in society to capture and adequately address this identity has unfavourably impacted their ability to receive both the cash dole and housing damage compensation. All of these concerns have been raised by several fisherfolks’ organisations of Shiyalbet, Jafrabad, Chanch port and Dhara port, as well as those of Saiyed Rajpara of Gir Somnath, Saiyed Rajpara, Nawa Bandar and Simar in their letter of demands to the Fisheries Commissioner, Gandhinagar.The relief package provided for a daily cash dole of Rs 100 per day for an adult and Rs 60 per day for a minor, for a period of one week. While providing this cash dole, using ration cards to determine eligibility caused many eligible people to slip through the cracks. In Saiyad Rajpara Dharabandar Vistar, ration cards have not been updated since 2011. This probably means that none of the members of these migrant fisherfolk communities have received the new NFSA cards, issued post-2013. Since cash doles were distributed as per the age of the people recorded on their ration cards as of 2011, people who were children in 2011 received Rs 60 instead of the Rs 100 they were entitled to. This also meant that new family members (since 2011) did not get any compensation at all. A similar exclusionary situation has been observed in other states too and the issue has been raised, time and again, in demands for the implementation of the right to food through the NFSA.Some migrant fisherfolk had cancelled their old ration card in Dharabandar (where they migrated from) but they have since not been able to get new ration cards in Saiyad Rajpara (where they migrated to). This, once again, resulted in many families not receiving any compensation. A woman we met said that her ration card was cancelled because she did not collect the ration for two months and as a result, she did not receive the cash dole. There may be many other migrant fisherfolk who had their ration cards cancelled because they could not collect their ration. If they have not been able to make a new ration card, they have been systematically excluded from receiving the relief disbursal. Problems with the house damage compensation In the case of house damage compensation, a significant drawback of the cyclone relief package is that it does not define what constitutes a ‘unit of entitlement’ or ‘family unit’ for relief disbursal purposes. In practice, ration cards were used once again. Also read: Reflections from the Sundarbans as Cyclone Amphan Turns OneThe migratory nature of the fisherfolk communities in these areas means that they have two living spaces; their home in the village and another at the place they migrate to. While the state government promised to undertake a survey, take stock of the situation and provide financial assistance to those who had incurred damages to their homes, the promise has not been fulfilled. In many places, the survey has not been carried out. In places where the survey has taken place, only the house mentioned in the ration card has been taken into account for compensation. If the house not mentioned in the ration card has been destroyed or damaged in the cyclone, those have not been recorded as entitled to compensation. Despite living as a separate housing unit, families with a joint ration card received compensation for only one house. While Gujarat has adopted the ambitious ‘One Nation One Ration Card’ (ONORC) scheme, the central government initiative that is meant to ensure the national portability of a ration card, the poor implementation of the NFSA is impacting the functioning of other programs and initiatives. Had the NFSA been appropriately implemented, using ration cards to determine what constitutes a unit of entitlement would have been adequate. In the absence of this, any entitlement which uses a ration card as the basis for eligibility will face complications and further distress to the affected communities. Thus, releasing a relief package with glaring lacunae in its design has deprived many rightful people of their entitlements. The authors are associated with the Centre for Social Justice, an organisation involved in providing legal representation to marginalised communities in Gujarat, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh.