COVID-19: Orphaned Children Up to Age 18 to Get Free Health Insurance of Rs 500,000

An Indian woman wearing a protective mask walks past wall graffiti creating awareness against COVID-19, at Navi Mumbai, in Thane on Aug. 4. (ANI photo)

NEW DELHI – Amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the government has decided to give free health insurance of Rs 500,000 to children up to the age of 18 years who were orphaned due to the pandemic, said Union Minister Anurag Thakur.

The premium will be paid by Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PMCares), he added. “As part of the steps taken to take care of children affected by COVID-19, children up to 18 years will be provided free health insurance of Rs 5 lakhs under Ayushman Bharat and its premium will be paid by PM CARES,” Thakur tweeted Aug. 4.

He shared an image along with the tweet which read that children up to the age of 18 years, who have lost both the parents or guardians, will be given a monthly stipend, and on turning 23 years old, an amount of Rs 1 million would be given.

According to an official statement, the PM CARES for Children Scheme was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 29, 2021, for the children. It aims to support children who have lost both the parents or legal guardian or adoptive parents or surviving parent to the COVID-19 pandemic during the period starting from March 11, 2020.

The objective of the scheme is to ensure comprehensive care and protection of children in a sustained manner, and enable their well-being through health insurance, empower them through education and equip them for self-sufficient existence with financial support on reaching 23 years of age.