New Delhi, April 19: The Central government has extended the duration of Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP), an insurance scheme for healthcare workers fighting Covid-19, for a further period of 180 days from April 19, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Tuesday.

The scheme has been extended so as to continue to provide the safety net to the dependents of healthcare workers who are deputed to take care of COVID-19 patients.

In this regard, a letter has been issued to Additional Chief Secretaries, Principal Secretaries Health, and Secretaries (Health) of all States and Union Territories. India Sees Sharp Decline in COVID-19 Cases, Records 1,247 Fresh Infections in Past 24 Hours.

The PMGKP was launched on March 30 last year to provide comprehensive personal accident cover of Rs 50 lakh to 22.12 lakh healthcare providers, including community health workers and private health workers, who may have been in direct contact and care of COVID-19 patients and may be at risk of being impacted by this.

Since the launch of the scheme, so far, 1,905 claims of health workers who died while being deployed for COVID-19 related duties have been settled, the ministry added.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 19, 2022 03:28 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).