Kin of 11,133 Covid victims got state’s ex-gratia amount: Minister

Bihar health minister Mangal Pandey on Tuesday said that the state government has so far paid an ex-gratia of ₹4 lakh each to the nearest kin of 11,133 deceased out of the total 12,858 persons, who died due to the Covid-19 in the state.

PATNA: Health minister Mangal Pandey on Tuesday said that the state government has so far paid an ex-gratia of ₹4 lakh each to the nearest kin of 11,133 deceased out of the total 12,858 persons, who died due to the Covid-19 in the state. Of them, the kin of 10,909 deceased has also received additional compensation of ₹50,000 each, as per the Central government’s guidelines.

Bihar health minister Mangal Pandey. (HT Photo)

The health minister gave out this data in the legislative council while replying to a starred question of Janata Dal (United) member Neeraj Kumar, who wanted to know how many families, whose members succumbed due to the pandemic, were left uncompensated.

Pandey said that the state government had received claims for compensation from the dependents of 11, 625 persons. “The rest of the families would get the earmarked compensation ( ₹4 lakh from the state government and ₹50,000 from the Central government) at the earliest,” he added.

Endoscopy machines lying dysfunctional at PMCH

Answering another query from a Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) member Ram Chandra Purbe, that endoscopy machines, which is vital equipment for radiological scanning of the intestine, are lying dysfunctional at the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) for the last one year, the minister said that the Bihar Medical Services and Infrastructure Corporation (BMSICL) has been asked to ensure that the machines are made operational at PMCH in the next 30 days.

350-acre land allotted for fresh industrial units

Industries minister Syed Shahnawaz Hussain on Tuesday informed the legislative council that 350.52-acre plots have been allotted to 60 units for setting up their industrial units by the Bihar Industrial Area Development Authority (BIADA) this year.

Replying to a short-notice question of JD(U) member Neeraj Kumar, Hussain said that the government has been expecting an investment of ₹3,407 crore in different industrial units, which would, in turn, create job opportunities for over 6,000 people.