555 Covid-orphaned children identified, CM to announce rehab package

: The state government has identified 555 children who have been orphaned in the pandemic across UP and the chief minister will soon announce a rehabilitation package for them. The state government will soon announce a rehabilitation package for these children and the UP State Commission for Protection of Child Rights will take care of them, said the state government in a statement issued on Sunday. The state women and child development department undertook the responsibility of identifying children below 18 who have lost both their parents or either mother or father to Covid. The department is also preparing a proposal in this regard which will be forwarded to the chief minister. The process of identifying children rendered orphan by the Covid is still going on. The state government is collecting details of all such children. The department has asked district magistrates to take the help of village child protection committees that are headed by gram pradhans in preparing the list of these children.

Child Line (1098), special juvenile police units, district child protection units and nigrani samitis (monitoring committees) in rural and urban areas are also assisting the DMs in preparing the list.