Delhi state chief Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday announced an ex-gratia amount of $700 for families who lost a family member to the coronavirus. Delhi is the first Indian state to offer monetary compensation to affected families.
Kejriwal is the first Indian state chief to announce monetary compensation for families who have lost someone to Covid-19.
"We may not be able to repair the loss of a loved one. But we can definitely help you out in this dark hour. Any family that has had a Covid death will get ex gratia of INR 50,000 ($700)," Kejriwal said at a press conference on Tuesday.
Kejriwal added, "If the husband dies, the pension will be given to the wife, if the wife dies it will be given to the husband. If an unmarried person dies, the pension will be given to her or his parents."
Kejriwal declared that children who lost both parents due to the coronavirus will receive a monthly pension of ₹2,500 ($34) until they turn 25. Moreover, their education, including for school and college will be borne by the state government.
कोरोना के ख़िलाफ़ जारी इस जंग में कुछ परिवार बेहद मुश्किल हालातों का सामना कर रहे हैं, ऐसे सभी ज़रूरतमंद परिवारों के लिए कुछ महत्वपूर्ण घोषणाएं | LIVE https://t.co/tEAtZCKMSb
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) May 18, 2021
Delhi witnessed over 35,000 coronavirus cases per day in late April and early May, and cases have now come down to less than 7,000 per day. On Tuesday, the capital reported 4,482 new Covid cases even as the infection rate dipped to 6.89%, the lowest in a month.
There have been many cases in which children have lost both parents to the deadly virus. And while some have lost both, others have lost the parent who was the sole breadwinner for the family, making them financially vulnerable.
