MYSURU: Both the state and central governments have announced compensation to bereaved families, which have lost a dear one to Covid-19. However, many families appear not to be too keen on applying for the compensation.
The Mysuru City Corporation (MCC), however, is intent on ensuring that all bereaved families, both below poverty line (BPL) and above poverty line (APL), receive the compensation they are entitled to.
Consequently, staff from the MCC are now knocking on doors to compile data on those who have succumbed to Covid, and ensuring that the necessary applications are filed to facilitate disbursal of compensation.
The MCC authorities, however, are struggling to trace the victims. Till date, as many as 2,436 people across Mysuru district have succumbed to Covid, a majority of whom were from areas under the jurisdiction of the MCC. Meanwhile, 240 people, although residents of Mysuru but died of Covid in other districts, will be compensated by the authorities here.
Many residents admitted to feeling surprised when MCC officials arrived at their doorstep seeking to know about deceased members of their families, and asking if they had received compensation. "My mother died of Covid nearly two years ago. There was no proper system in place for us to ensure she received proper treatment at a private hospital. Since we were classified as an APL family, we never expected to be compensated. But the MCC authorities collected all the information from the private hospital, and gave us Rs 50,000 compensation," said Sudha BS, a resident of Yadavagiri.
Sudha was appreciative of the MCC's efforts on this front. "The MCC officials must be appreciated for undertaking such an initiative," she said.
MCC commissioner G Lakshmikanth Reddy said that more than 1,200 people in the city had succumbed to Covid. "More than 800 people have submitted documents seeking compensation. We launched this drive to trace the families of every person who died of Covid. The door-to-door survey was launched one week ago," Reddy said.
Additional deputy commissioner Manjunatha Swamy said that the cheques to be disbursed to bereaved families were ready. "We have compensated 1,400 families so far across Mysuru district. In the villages too, we have completed all the relevant paperwork. We have launched the door-to-door survey across Mysuru to ensure all families receive the compensation due to them. In Mysuru city, very few families are yet to be traced, and given the compensation," Swamy said.
