577 children were orphaned between April 1 and May 25 this year, as per government data
Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra have joined the list of states reaching out to children who lost their parents to Covid amid India's battle against a deadly second wave.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has announced an assistance of Rs 5 lakh to children who lost both their parents. He further said the state government will bear education costs for these children till graduation level.
In Maharashtra, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has asked the state's Women and Child Development department to prepare a policy to assist children who have lost one or both parents to Covid.
Addressing a virtual meeting, Mr Thackeray said the plan must include information on provision for their upbringing and education, said the Chief Minister's Office.
The Chief Minister also asked the department to communicate with the recently formed pediatric task force to prepare guidelines to shield children from the pandemic.
With the second wave pushing up the number of deaths across the country, many children have lost both parents or the earning parent and now stare at an uncertain future.
Union Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani has said that according to reports from states and Union Territories, 577 children were orphaned between April 1 and May 25 this year. The government is committed to support and protect these children, she said.
The Supreme Court has asked the states to ensure that the necessities of children orphaned during the pandemic are taken care of.
Hearing a case linked to Covid infection in child protection homes, the Supreme Court said yesterday: "The Covid pandemic has created an unprecedented situation and has a cascading effect on vulnerable children. Authorities must identify children who were orphaned due to the pandemic or otherwise and take steps to address their basic needs."
The court has also asked states to collate data on children orphaned since March 2020, when the nationwide lockdown was imposed to control Covid cases, and upload it on the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights portal.
Several states have so far offered assistance ranging from financial aid and free education to children who have been orphaned. These include Delhi, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.