J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha announces pension to old dependents of Covid-19 victims

Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha announced a number of welfare measures for the people hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, including special pension for life for senior citizens who have lost the only earning member of their family and special scholarship for children who have lost their parents.

Sinha said `55 crore will be released under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) to the deputy commissioners, both divisional commissioners and J&K Police, for emergency use during the ongoing crisis.

“Many of our near and dear ones have left us untimely due to Covid-19. The government has decided to reach out to each and every such family and they will be provided with financial assistance for self-employment by the Jammu & Kashmir Bank,” said Sinha.


J&K has recorded a surge in Covid-19 cases and deaths since the first week of April, with the number of active cases soaring to 50,701 by May 11 from 2,900 while the number of deaths increased to 2,847 from 1,998 in five weeks. On Tuesday, J&K recorded 4,352 positive cases and 65 deaths – 2.644 cases and 24 deaths in Kashmir. As the administration decided to impose a lockdown to control the spread of the coronavirus, Sinha announced an honorarium of `1,000 per month to all registered construction workers, ponywalas, palkiwalas and pithuwalas for the next two months.