ITANAGAR, 30 May: Children orphaned due to Covid-19 were provided with a gamut of services released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, under the PM CARES for Children Scheme, through videoconference on Monday.
In Itanagar, the conference was attended by Women & Child Development (WCD) Secretary CN Longphai, WCD Director TP Loyi, and a team of officers and officials. At the district level, the videoconference was attended by the district authorities of West Kameng, Lohit and Anjaw districts, where Covid orphaned children have been identified.
A total of eight children who lost their parent(s) to Covid-19 were identified in the state – two in West Kameng, one in Lohit, three in Upper Siang, and two in Anjaw district.
“Upon migration of three children to their home state Odisha, there are five Covid orphaned children in the state as of today,” the WCD department informed in a release.
During the programme, the district authorities handed over letters from the prime minister, certificates of PM CARES, PM CARES for Children passbooks, and health cards under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana to the children, in the virtual presence of the prime minister and others.
The PM CARES for Children Scheme was announced by the Centre on 29 May. It is a comprehensive scheme for providing care and protection to children who have lost their parent(s) to the Covid pandemic.
“The scheme, inter alia, provides support to these children through convergent approach, gap funding for ensuring education, health, monthly stipend from the age of 18 years, and lump sum amount of Rs 10 lakhs on attaining 23 years of age,” the department said.
The scheme is monitored by the union WCD ministry, and in Arunachal, the WCD is the nodal department, it said.
