Image Courtesy:moneycontrol.com
During the monsoon session in Uttar Pradesh state assembly, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that a total of 103 Covid warriors (health and sanitation workers) have died of Covid-19 and so far, the families of 41 of them had received the ex-gratia compensation of 50 lakh rupees.
The Chief Minister provided this answer via a written statement as a response to the question asked by Samajwadi Party leader Sanjay Garg. His answer (translated in English) read, “On the basis of the applications received in the Directorate General of Medical and Health, 103 corona warriors died of Coronavirus, out of which money has been issued to the deceased dependents of 41 corona warriors by The New India Insurance Company.”
In addition to this, on August 17, 8 cases were sent to The New India Insurance Company for release of the promised funds. For the remaining 54 families who lost someone to Covid-19, the Chief Minister said that as soon as the original certificate is received from the district level, it will be sent to The New India Insurance Company for release of funds.
In May this year, the central government had reportedly announced a compensation of 50 lakh rupees under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package for corona warriors. But according to a report in Times of India, several families have had to wait for monetary relief despite several applications and reminders.
TOI reported that one Preeti, a government school teacher in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh has been running from pillar to post, struggling to get the promised amount after her husband’s death to Covid-19. She told the publication, “Forget about the compensation, even pension has not started despite several reminders. Beside loan EMIs, paying for children’s education has become difficult.”
The total number of deaths of sanitation and health workers may be arguably higher than a mere 103. As per an Article 14 report, the death count in 24 districts of Uttar Pradesh is 43 times more than the official Covid-19 toll. The excess deaths in these districts were between 10 to 335 times higher than the reported Covid-19 death toll between 1 July 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021.
The answer in UP assembly in Hindi may be read here:
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