The Court said that the compensation amount is left to “the wisdom of the NDMA” and that the guidelines should be finalized within 6 weeks.
The Supreme Court in an order on Wednesday directed the Union government to formulate guidelines to pay compensation to the families of those who died due to COVID-19 and ordered the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to have the guidelines put in place for the same.
The Court said that the compensation amount is left to “the wisdom of the NDMA” and that the guidelines should be finalized within 6 weeks.
Supreme Court directs the Union of India to frame guidelines to pay ex-gratia compensation to the families of those who died due to COVID19 pic.twitter.com/kDL16dtCwv
— ANI (@ANI) June 30, 2021
A Bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan and MR Shah delivered the judgment on a plea seeking directions to the Central and State governments to provide ex-gratia compensation of Rs. 4 lakh to the family members of those who have succumbed to the COVID-19 disease and post COVID complications including mucormycosis.
“We direct NDMA to form guidelines for ex gratia compensation for family members of persons who succumbed to covid as per minimum standards of relief. The reasonable amount to be provided is left to the wisdom of national authority,” the judgment stated, according to Bar&Bench
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Earlier, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had informed the Supreme Court that giving an ex gratia payment of Rs. 4 lakh to kin of each COVID-19 deceased would not be possible as “resources of the government are limited” and the entire amount of State Disaster Relief Fund will end up being utilized for such payments if such payments are made.
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