Just like a war spreads disaster all around, Coronavirus pandemic is nothing short of an international disaster , even much more than the scale of the second world war . We in India are facing the worst challenge of the century where besides people succumbing in large numbers to the virus, the pandemic has caused and is causing huge economic impact. While we have been resolutely fighting the pandemic and practically defeated the first wave , the ferocious second wave which has engulfed most parts of the country menacingly including Jammu and Kashmir , incessant endeavours of the Governments in States and UTs have now been able to put some break to its speed of its spread and the positivity rate thus is gradually coming down and slowly heading towards pre-April figures, at the same time it is equally important to see how the pandemic hit families were assisted and rehabilitated. In this connection, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has launched a special scheme for such families which lost their only bread earner due to the COVID pandemic. The scheme provides for financial assistance as a support base which was aimed at mitigating their sufferings . Right from next month, the scheme was going to enter implementation phase to actually start providing cash assistance to the affected families in Jammu and Kashmir.
The scheme known as “Special Assistance Scheme for COVID Mortalities (SASCM) provides for a cash assistance of Rs 1000 per month to the spouse and the eldest member of the family. This is a step taken in time and in the most desired direction for which the UT administration deserves commendation. Although no amount can compensate the loss of a human life , yet providing help for sustenance to the surviving members is what the Government is supposed to do . For that matter, even other social , cultural and religious organisations in the highest traditions of humanity must follow suit to lend credence to the concept that “we can be part of the gigantic solution” to provide a sense of assurance to the affected families or a feeling of not being let down . A long term solution to ameliorate the lot of the affected families could be by promotion of self employment opportunities for which the UT administration must extend all possible help to any of the surviving members of the COVID affected families desirous to start any type of small business to earn a livelihood.
For any scheme to be workable and for proper implementation thereof , there must be a well organised mechanism and verily, therefore, a comprehensive approach seems to have been adopted by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir in that a special cell in Social Welfare Department has been created. This is important as tracking support after due identification of the affected families can be done properly so as to leave no one behind. Cash in hand is of immense help in its own way as it helps to pay basic essentials needed to put one’s soul and body together. Since almost in every catastrophe , children are the worst sufferers , the notable feature of the SASCM is the provision of a scholarship of Rs.20,000 per annum for school going children and Rs 40,000 per annum for college going students. The salient features regarding eligibility for and the limit of the scholarships in a family have been clearly mentioned in the scheme itself .This part of the scheme was going to ensure uninterrupted studies of the school and college going children of the COVID pandemic families which was a concomitant of the affected students standing on their legs to build their safe and assured future.
Social Welfare Department otherwise has schemes specially tailored for families in distress and it is up to that department to see its way how it could extend help in addition to under SASCM to such families. A comprehensive approach was needed to be adopted in seeing such families taken out of the distress so as to see them not suffering on account of problems of sustenance and education of their children.
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