GUWAHATI: The Assam government has started the process of providing financial assistance to persons from economically disadvantaged categories who are stranded outside the state in the wake of the extended country-wide lockdown.
Addressing reporters at the National Health Mission office here on Monday, state health and family welfare minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma said that a one-time ex gratia grant of Rs 2000 under the financial outreach scheme, Assam Cares, has been transferred as the first installment to the bank accounts of the first batch of 86000 persons whose authenticity has been verified by deputy commissioners.
“We will be considering provision of another installment during the lockdown process. Overall, we have verified about 4.29 lakh persons after a head count and received applications from 2, 28126 people for the financial assistance,” Sarma said.
“Not just the aid, we have through this scheme managed to also know the number of persons coming from a particular state, which station in Assam they will arrive, and which city/town/area in the state they are from. The data being verified by the deputy commissioners will help us in implementing all the COVID-19 protocols, including screening, quarantining and testing, on their return,” he said.
Assam is one of the few states to have reached out to people stranded outside the state through such a financial outreach scheme during the lockdown.
A web link was sent to the numbers for those eligible to avail of the scheme and subsequently apply. A little over a lakh application forms so far have been rejected though as their criteria did not meet the scheme eligibility norms.
Sarma also informed that as many as 647 critically ill persons who are currently outside Assam have been provided with a one-time assistance of Rs 25000 so far.