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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 29 announced a series of welfare measures for children who have lost both parents due to Covid-19. It is a welcome move considering the second wave has left many children vulnerable and unprepared to tackle the sudden loss. At this hour of need, such constructive efforts by providing financial support can certainly give wings to their dreams.

First and foremost, with the announcement of the initiatives, the government has acknowledged Covid orphans that have lost both their parents. It has woken up to the fact that these Covid orphans would face numerous challenges in future.

Implementation

Having said that, one of the initial challenges for the implementation of the scheme could be the identification of these children. The government can enlist the support of NGOs and charitable institutions that are coming forward to collate data related to children who have lost both parents to Covid-19.

Criteria

The second point of concern is the fact that the scheme applies to children who have lost both parents. This can leave thousands of children who have lost only a single parent but who could be a primary earning member of the family. There is a need to widen the scope of the scheme to include the death of the earning member of the family, as it could be a big challenge for the non-earning mother to meet the educational needs of her child. By drawing up a plan for Covid orphans the government has certainly taken timely action but by widening the scope more affected families can be provided with some relief.

Securing future

Nothing can compensate the loss of losing parents but some financial protection can ensure that their dreams don’t get shattered. The plans announced today will go a long way in giving financial security to Covid orphans. For example, the initiatives announced by the PM to take care of the education of these children by contributing Rs 10 lakh for each child when he or she reaches 18 years of age will help in building the child’s career without any financial hurdles. Similarly, the initiatives have been announced to give kids admission in Kendriya Vidyalaya, Sainik School, Navodaya Vidyalaya, private school. Not only the fees but the government will also pay for expenditure o uniform, text and notebook.

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Separately, children will get free health insurance of Rs 5 lakh under Ayushman Bharat until 18 years. The premium for Covid-affected children will be paid by PM CARES. Considering more than 80% of the healthcare needs of Indians are met by out-of-pocket expenditure, the Rs 5 lakh free cover offered under the Ayushman Bharat scheme will certainly encourage more people to take up the scheme.