Modi to launch scholarship for children orphaned by Covid

MUMBAI, May 30 Reuters-  India’s federal government will provide educational scholarships, mental health counselling and health insurance to children who have been orphaned by the corona virus pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Monday.   

“For those who have lost a loved one to coronavirus, the change it has brought to their lives is so difficult,” Modi announced during an event.  

Under the scheme, children who have lost both parents to the corona virus from March 11, 2020 to February 2022 will be given, among other things, free admission to a nearby school, schoolbooks and a sum of 1 million Indian rupees ($12,899.60) once they turn 23 years of age, according to a government statement.  During the second wave in 2021, many children were left without a carer because both parents were ill and hospitalized with COVID-19, raising alarm bells among activists and government officials.