Karnataka identifies 117 children orphaned by Covid-19

Almost a month after the lethal second wave of Covid subsided, the state government has identified 117 children who lost both their parents due to the pandemic.

These are children whose parents succumbed to Covid-19 since March 2020, when the pandemic broke out.

Bengaluru Urban and Chikkaballpur districts have the most number of orphans with 12 children each. In three districts - Bengaluru Rural, Udupi and Uttara Kannada - no orphans have been identified.

Speaking to DH, Women & Child Development Minister Halappa Achar said that the process of identifying the orphans was ongoing. “Of the orphans identified during surveys, basic relief amount is transferred to almost all the children,” he said.

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According to the minister, benefits for 110 of the 117 children were transferred to their bank accounts under Chief Minister’s Bala Seva Scheme (CMBSS). “The remaining applications are under process. One or two cases are pending for approval in district-level committees. Anganwadi workers and officials from all gram panchayats are on a lookout for such children. The process will continue until all children orphaned by the pandemic are identified,” Achar said.

Based on the reports submitted by local authorities, the district administration will ensure benefits for children announced under the Scheme by the government, Achar added.

It can be recalled that the CMBSS was launched by former chief minister B S Yediyurappa in May this year with a slew of measures to help the orphaned children. Under the scheme, children below 10 years will receive financial assistance of Rs 3,500 per month.

Apart from this, children who had passed Class 10 were offered laptops by the government. Women above 21 years were assured a one-time financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh under the scheme.