On Saturday March 14, 2020, the BJP government did a U-turn on granting ex-gratia relief of Rs 4 lakh each to families of those who die of the novel coronavirus, hours after it made the announcement, as reported by the Print.
The home ministry had earlier stated it would treat COVID-19 as a notified disaster to provide assistance under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).
The government also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh for all coronavirus deaths and those involved in relief operations in the containment of COVID-19. It also stated that it would provide monetary assistance on hospitalisation costs for managing COVID-19 cases “at rates fixed by the state government”.
But, within hours, a revised notification was released which said monetary help would be extended for quarantine measures, sample collection and screening. Procurement of essential equipment and labs to contain the disease will also be covered under the SDRF. The clause on ex-gratia and cost of hospitalisation of all coronavirus positive patients was deleted.
