Palakkad first district to achieve full enrolmen

PALAKKAD: Palakkad has become the first district in the state to achieve total enrolment of ‘care givers’ under the Ashwasa Kiran Scheme launched by the Kerala State Social Security Mission. Social Welfare and Panchayat Minister M K Muneer will make the announcement on the district achieving full enrolment of care givers and helpers of sick people in the state on Thursday. The minister will also give away financial assistance to the beneficiaries at a function to be held at the Government Moyan Lower Primary School. Opposition Leader V S Achuthanandan will preside over the function. In the first phase, the assistance will be given to 2,200 persons residing in the nearby blocks.In the second phase, the remaining 2,248 persons will get the amounts through electronic money order to their houses.   Regional Director of the Kerala Social Security Mission Mohammed Younus and programme officer Shaji told reporters here on Tuesday that there were only 150 applicants from Palakkad district when the scheme was announced in the state in 2010. Of them 130 were provided benefits.  Under the scheme, the bystanders or helpers of the bed-ridden patients would be provided a monthly assistance of `400 if the caretaker’s annual income is less than `22,375 in urban areas or less than `20,000 in rural areas or if he is not a recipient of any other social security pension.  Later in Palakkad district, an intensive campaign was undertaken under the joint auspices of the peoples’ representatives, Social Welfare Department and the Social Security Mission under which all eligible helpers and caretakers of patients were identified and forms were distributed by anganwadi workers and a list prepared. A total of 4,700 applications were received from helpers in Palakkad district of which 4,448 persons were cleared for disbursement of monthly amounts under the scheme.Under the scheme, there are only 16,000 beneficiaries in the state.  Mohammed Younus said the scheme would be reviewed every three months so that only the deserving people will get the benefits.

Original news source