Rs 50,000 ex-gratia aid given to kin of those who succumbed to Covid: Govt
New Delhi (PTI): The government is giving ex-gratia assistance of Rs 50,000 to the kin of those who succumbed to COVID-19, Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
The ex-gratia amount to the COVID-19 victims are being given following a Supreme Court order and guidelines issued by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, he said replying to a written question.
The assistance is given to the kin of the deceased person, including those involved in relief operations or associated in preparedness activities, from the State Disaster Response Fund, subject to cause of death being certified as Covid, according to the 'Guidelines for Official Document for COVID-19 Death' jointly issued by the Health Ministry and the Indian Council of Medical Research, he said.
Rai said to ameliorate the hardships faced by poor people due to economic disruption caused by Covid and to minimise the pandemic's impacts on food security, the government in March, 2020, announced the distribution of additional free-of-cost food grains (rice/wheat) to about 80 crore National Food Security Act (NFSA) -- Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and Priority Households (PHH) beneficiaries -- at the scale of 5 kg per person per month under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY).
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4 workers die after being buried under coal slurry in Jharkhand's Dhanbad
Dhanbad (Jharkhand) (PTI): At least four workers died after being buried under coal slurry in Jharkhand's Dhanbad district on Saturday, a police official said.
The incident took place at Moonidih coal washery in the command area of Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL).
"Bodies of all four workers were dug out of debris during a rescue operation," Putki police station in-charge Waqar Hussain told PTI.
The incident took place when coal slurry was being loaded into trucks by workers, during which a large chunk of slurry fell and trapped several workers underneath, officials said.
The deceased have been identified as Manik Bauri, Dinesh Bauri, Deepak Bauri, and Hemlal Gope.
Meanwhile, the family members of the deceased and local villagers placed the bodies in front of the washery gate and began a protest.
They demanded compensation, jobs for dependents and action against those responsible for the incident.
Police and administration officials are trying to pacify the protesters, an official said.
