Nitish Kumar led Bihar government has notified that Rs 4 lakh compensation will be paid to all those who died and will succumb to Covid -19 until the end of current fiscal 2021-22.
The notification issued by the Bihar government on June 9, 2021 informs that the Nitish government has been paying Rs 4 lakh compensation to the families of Covid -19 deceased patients under the Mukhya Mantri Rahat Kosh( Chief Minister’s Relief Fund in Bihar).
Already 3737 deceased Covid-19 patients were paid. Now, the same Bihar government’s notification going viral in social media points out that the Rs 4 lakh compensation will be paid to victims of Covid-19 or to the families of those unfortunate victims who will die due to Covid -18 till March 31,2022.
Earlier, responding to the Supreme Court’s intervention in view of a PIL seeking “ minimum standards of relief” and ex-gratia payment to Covid -19 deceased families, the Centre had told the top court that it can not do so because it would exhaust its disaster relief funds.
The Centre had also said that compensation of Rs 4 lakh can not be paid to victims of Covid -19 as the disaster management law mandating compensation applies only to “ natural disasters”like earthquake, floods,etc.
Against this backdrop, Nitish Kumar government has been more welfare oriented and a relief provider to Covid-19 victims than many state governments including Delhi and Jharkhand where no such compensation of Rs 4 lakh paid to any one of hundreds of Covid -19 victims there.
Note: kindly find enclosed Bihar Government Notification Letter No -01,Covid-19, 09/2021