Prashant Kishor criticises govt, says need help now, not when they're adult

New Delhi: Political strategist Prashant Kishor on Sunday criticised the PM CARES aid announced by Prime Minister Office (PMO) for children who have lost both their parents to the COVID-19 pandemic and blamed the government for its 'catastrophic mishandling' of the pandemic.

Criticising the move, Kishor said orphaned children should receive the support now and not when they are adults.

Responding to a tweet shared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kishor said: "Another typical #MasterStroke by #ModiSarkar this time redefining EMPATHY and CARE for children ravaged by #Covid and its catastrophic mishandling. Instead of receiving much needed support NOW, the children should feel POSITIVE about a PROMISE of stipend when they turn 18"

"Be grateful to #PMCares for PROMISE of free education; a RIGHT guaranteed by the Constitution/RTE. Thank @PMOIndia for ASSURANCE to be enrolled in Ayushman Bharat that supposedly covers healthcare needs of 50Cr Indians but only FAILED to provide bed/oxygen when needed," he added.

On the eve of his government's second anniversary in its second term, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Saturday announced a number of welfare measures for children who lost their parents to COVID-19, including ensuring a corpus of Rs 10 lakh when they turn 18 and providing for their education.

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement that fixed deposits will be opened in the names of such children, and the PM-CARES fund will contribute through a specially designed scheme to create a corpus of Rs 10 lakh for each of them when he or she reaches 18 years of age.

This corpus will be used to give a monthly financial support or stipend from 18 years of age for the next five years to take care of his or her personal requirements during the period of higher education. On reaching the age of 23 years, they will get the corpus amount as one lump-sum for personal and professional use.