Health

Coronavirus update: Sitharaman allocates Rs 3,500 cr for foodgrain for migrants

India’s death toll has crossed 2,500

 
By DTE Staff
Published: Thursday 14 May 2020

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman says Rs 3,500 crore to be set aside for distributing foodgrain through state government for migrant workers without ration cards.

  • This will mandate 5 kilogram rice / wheat and 1 kg gram per family per month for two months.
  • Moots national portability for ration cards by March next year.
  • Clarifgication suggests portability will be through Aadhaar.
  • Nearly Rs 2 lakh cr concessional credit through Kisan Credit Cards; apart from farming, fishing and animal husbandry to be included.
  • Immediate release of Rs 30,000 cr top up for Nabard to help in Rabi procurement and Kharif preparations.
  • Compensatory Afforestation Funds to be used to generate employment for tribal communities through forestry-related work.
  • Promises affordable rental housing scheme.
  • Rs 1,500 cr set aside for 2 per cent interest subvention in Mudra Sishu (up to Rs 50,000) loans. 
  • Rs 5,000 cr worth credit for street vendors within a month.
  • Interest subvention on farm credit extended through May 31, 2020.
  • Credit-linked subsidy for affordable housing extended up to March 2021.
  • Uttar Pradesh has requested and accepted 386 Shramik trains to bring back migrants.
  • Bihar has requested and accepted 204 such trains.
  • Other states include Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal. 
  • India’s novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) death toll was at 2,549, according to the Union health ministry.
  • There were 49,219 active COVID-19 cases in the country.
  • Until now, 26,234 patients have been cured / discharged.
  • India’s total COVID-19 tally was at 78,003.
  • The global tally was at 4,452,806, according to aggregator Worldometers.info.
  • Worldover, 298,737 people have died.
  • Active cases were at 2,478,141.
  • The proportion of patients serious / critical remained at 2 per cent.

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