BJP to help families of party workers who succumbed to Covid
In a first, Rajasthan BJP is planning to help the aggrieved families of 585 BJP workers who succumbed to Covid-19 while carrying out relief work during the pandemic in the state, officials said.
“We are fixing the responsibility on the MPS, MLAS and other public representatives of the BJP for helping the aggrieved families of the workers,” state BJP president Satish Poonia said.
State BJP has prepared a list of party workers, who died due to Covid-19, for extending help to their families. The state BJP has prepared a policy for helping families of such deceased BJP workers. The state party unit has decided to put the responsibility of the families of the deceased BJP workers on the public representatives.
Poonia said that the BJP is the first party that has started a programme to help the families of workers who have laid their lives combating Covid-19 and providing their service amid the pandemic.
The party unit has prepared the list of the deceased BJP workers based on the information sought from the district executive committees of BJP and district BJP President, Poonia added.
Nearly 250,000 BJP workers have participated in the ‘Public Service’ campaign during the Covid-19 period and collected 40,000 units of blood through voluntary blood donation camp, he said. Party workers prepared nearly 1000,000 food packets along with 325,000 ration kits for the people affected by Covid-19, he asserted. “Since BJP workers have laid their lives extending relief to the people during the Covid-19 period, it is our responsibility to help the families of their workers,” he said.
Poonia said that the party has decided to not only look after such families but also help them financially and solemnize weddings of the daughters in their families.
Out of the total 585 BJP workers who died due to Covid-19 from the year 2020 till now, the maximum number of deaths of BJP workers has been reported from the Kota division. “BJP workers have also died of Covid-19 in other districts as well including Tonk, Ajmer, Nagaur, Jodhpur, Jaipur, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Bharatpur, Karauli, Sawai Madhopur, Dholpur, Udaipur, Banswara, Udaipur, Hanumangarh, Shri Ganganagar, Jalore, Pali, Sirohi, Pratapgarh and others,” he said.
Besides BJP workers, financial assistance in the form of free education and the wedding of daughters shall be offered to aggrieving families of Covid-19 victims from the general public, said Poonia.
Congress was quick to react to BJP’S initiative, state spokesperson Archana Sharma said that the move should be welcomed but the assistance should be extended to the common public also along with party workers who have lost earning members of the family in the Covid-19 pandemic.