India Pledges to Pay $674 in Compensation for Every COVID-19 Death

The Indian government has promised to pay $674 in compensation for each death caused by the COVID-19 virus.

Following a plea by lawyers seeking compensation under the country's disaster management regulations, India's supreme court has approved the government's decision.

COVID-19 has claimed the lives of at than 447,000 inpiduals in South Asia so far, however researchers estimate that ten times as many people may have died.

The compensation will be paid to the“next of kith and kin of the deceased person”, according to Justice MR Shah. It should be paid within 30 days of a family submitting an application, according to the court.

In June, petitioners sought legal help to pay compensation to COVID-19 victims' families, invoking India's National Disaster Management Act of 2005.

Families of persons who died in disasters are entitled to $5,367 (400,000INR) in compensation, according to the law.

We are aware that the government has spent a significant amount of money to combat the pandemic. However, we believe the government should have compensated each impacted household with 400,000 rupees as required by law.

“Or they could have given a higher amount to the poor families and less to the well-to-do. They could have bettered it,” One of the petitioners, Gaurav Kumar Bansal, told the BBC.

According to the federal government, the cash for the compensation will come from the states.

At least two states, Kerala and Rajasthan, have expressed concern that the compensation will put a strain on their budgets, claiming that the monies should come from the central government.