Since March 2020, whole world is fighting against this deadly Coronavirus Disease – 2019 (popularly known as COVID-19). In the month of March, 2020 World Health Organisation (WHO) had also declared COVID-19 as pandemic. Even Indian Government declared COVID-19 as epidermic disease under Epidermic Act, 1897 and had declared this COVID-19 as pandemic.
All across the world including our country, Government had time and again issued various advisories for curtaining and fighting against this pandemic like wearing of mask became compulsory, maintaining social distancing, lockdowns in various parts, etc. Inspite of various precautions being taken by the Government and most importantly, public at large, there have been various covid cases not only in India but in the world at large. Many covid patients have also died while fighting against this deadly disease. Many health care personnel’s, frontline workers, have died. There are even cases where only the sole bread earner of the family has been scummed to death due to covid.
None of the Government whether Central Government or any State Government can bring back the person who has died due to covid. So, to ensure that covid dead patient’s family does not suffer due to financial problem, the central Government and state governments have come out with various compensation scheme.
List of various compensation schemes for the families of the patient who has died due to COVID-19 are as follows:
- Delhi Government shall provide Rs 50,000 compensation to all families that have lost a member to the coronavirus. Further, if the person who died of the infection was the earning member of the family, then the Delhi Government will provide Rs 2,500 per month along with the ex-gratia amount.
- The central government shall provide Rs 5 lakh financial relief to the families of journalists who died due to COVID-19 during the years 2020 and 2021.
- Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana Packages: Safai karamcharis, ward-boys, nurses, ASHA workers, paramedics, technicians, doctors and specialists, and other health workers would be covered by a Special insurance Scheme. Any health professional, who while treating Covid-19 patients, meet with some accident, then he/she would be compensated with an amount of Rs 50 lakh under the scheme.
- Family pension under Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) which is the benefit provided for employment-related death cases has been extended to those who have died due to Covid. Dependent family members of such persons will be entitled to the benefit of pension equivalent to 90% of the average daily wage drawn by the worker as per the existing norms. This benefit will be available retrospectively with effect from 24.03.2020 and for all such cases till 24.03.2022.
- Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance Scheme (EDLI): The amount of maximum insurance benefit has been increased from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 7 lakh. The provision of a minimum insurance benefit of Rs 2.5 lakh has been restored and will apply retrospectively from February 15, 2020, for the next three years. To benefit families of contractual, casual workers, the condition of continuous employment in only one establishment has been liberalized, with the benefit being made available to families of even those employees who may have changed jobs in the last 12 months preceding his death.
- All children who have lost both parents or surviving parent or legal guardian/adoptive parents due to Covid 19 will be supported under the ‘PM-CARES for Children’ scheme’.
