Gujarat: 3,963 kids who lost a parent to Covid-19 get financial help

CHIEF MINISTER Vijay Rupani extended the Mukhyamantri Bal Seva Yojana (MBSY) to even those children who have lost one of their parents during the Covid-19 pandemic and launched a new scheme of providing Rs 50,000 financial assistance to young widows who get remarried, while leading the celebrations of ‘Samvedana Divas’ in the run up to the fifth anniversary of he assuming the office of CM, in Rajkot on Monday.

On July 7 the government gave assistance under MBSY to 776 children who had lost both parents to Covid 19. On Monday, the CM formally extended benefits of the scheme to 3,963 more children of the state who have lost one of their parents during the pandemic. At the Seva Setu event, JM Financial Foundation of Mumbai signed a memorandum of understanding with the state government in the presence of Rupani and Social Justice and Empower Minister Ishwar Parmar to pay for school fees of children covered under MBSY and studying in private schools, till they attain the age of 18. The CM said the school JM Financial Foundation will pay school fees with an upper limit of Rs 50,000 per annum per student.

Rupani presided over the state government’s main Seva Setu event organised on the ground of Dharmendrasinhji Arts College in Rajkot even as similar events were organised at 500 other places across Gujarat simultaneously. While addressing the event in Rajkot, Rupani announced that children, below age of 18, who have lost one of their parents since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in the state from March 18, 2020 will also get the benefits of MBSY.

He said that such children will be eligible to get monthly assistance worth Rs 2,000 from the state government. The assistance will be paid to relatives who are taking care of such children. He also announced the launch of Gangaswarupa Vidhva Punarlanga Sahay Yojana to provide Rs 50,000 assistance to young widows to help them get remarried.

“Today, we are launching these two schemes which demonstrate the sensitivity of the government. In welfare state — Ram Rajya—the rulers are obliged to ensure social security and extend help to those in need. This has to be part of the system. Thus, as part of the social responsibility, we are launching these schemes,” Rupani said while addressing beneficiaries.

Rupani said that Gujarat was the first state in the entire country to come up with a scheme for children who have lost one parent during the ongoing pandemic.

Rupani, who was celebrating his 66th birthday on Monday, also said that the state government was obliged to stand by women who are widowed at a young age. “Widows face many difficulties in life. If they get remarried, the state government would give them Rs 50,000…” said the CM and later handed over bond worth Rs 25,000 and Rs 25,000 worth of kanyadan kit to two young widows at the Seva Setu event.

The state government on Sunday launched the week-long drive of various events to mark Rupani’s and deputy chief minister Nitin Patel’s five years in office. The first day was celebrated as Gyan Shakti Divas, while the second day was celebrated as Samvedana Divas.

“This is not a celebration of five years but a yagna of rendering services… When the world had come to a grinding halt during the Covid-19 pandemic, development projects worth Rs 16,000 crore were launched for welfare of the public, to Gujarat take forward. This is seva yagna. This is the reason we are celebrating this day as Samvedna Divas.”

Later in the day, Rupani interacted with 79 children covered under MBSY and shared lunch with them at Jan Kalyan Hall in the city. The CM alsoaunched a number of projects of Rajkot Municipal Corporation and Rajkot city police.