In a move to support the lives ofchildren orphaned in the pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday has an announced slew of relief measures under PM Cares for Children.
The decision has been taken afterPM Modi headed the Covid review meeting, in which the impact of the pandemic on childrenwas assessed and measures were formulated to mitigate it.
Under these relief measures, PMModi has announced to give Rs 10 lakh to each child orphaned in a pandemic whenthey reach 18 years of age. This Rs10 lakh would be given to the children inthe form of a monthly stipend from 18-23 years of age in lieu to support children’spersonal requirements during their higher education period.
However, when the child willreach the age of 23, he/she would get the total amount as a lump sum so theycan utilize it for their personal as well as professional needs.
Apart from this, PM Modi has alsodecided to provide free education to these children.
"Children represent thefuture of the country and we will do everything to support and protect thechildren. It is our duty, as a society, to care for our children and instillhope for a bright future," PM Modi said.
Children who are under 10 years,will get admission to the nearest Kendriya Vidyalaya or as a day scholar in aprivate school. In private schools, the tuition fee will be paid as per theRTE norms. From the PM Cares fund, children’s uniforms, textbooks, and notebooksexpenditure will be made.
According to these measures, forthe children between 11-18 years, a child will get admission in any CentralGovernment residential schools such as Sainik School, Navodya Vidyalaya, etc. Incase a child belongs to an extended family and they are looking after him thenhe/she can get admission to the nearest Kendriya Vidyalaya or a private school.
PM Modi while announcing the measuressaid his government will provide assistance to children in availing aneducational loan for their higher education/ professional courses. Also, theinterest amount on these loans will be paid by the government itself.
To promote the health of suchchildren, PM Modi said all these children will be enrolled under AyushmanBharat’s insurance cover Rs 5 lakh till they reach 18 years of age and thepremium will be paid as part of the scheme.
It is to be noted here that, PMModi said these measures have only been announced due to the generouscontributions to the PM Cares Fund, which has been initiated to support India’sfight against Covid.