PM-CARES for Children’ scheme

The PM CARES for Children Scheme was launched on 29th May 2021.

It aims to support children who have lost both the Parents or legal Guardian or Adoptive Parents or Surviving Parent to COVID-19 pandemic during the period starting from 11th March 2020 to 28th February, 2022. The objective of the Scheme is to ensure comprehensive care and protection of Children in a sustained manner, and enable their well being through health insurance, empower them through education and equip them for self-sufficient existence with financial support on reaching 23 years of age.

Eligibility

All children who have lost both parents or surviving parent or legal guardian/adoptive parents due to Covid 19 will be supported under ‘PM-CARES for Children’ scheme. 

Benefits to children

1. Fixed Deposit in the name of the child:

PM CARES will contribute through a specially designed scheme to create a corpus of Rs 10 lakh for each child when he or she reaches 18 years of age. This corpus:

• Will be used to give a monthly financial support/ 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 and
• On reaching the age of 23 years, he or she will get the corpus amount as one lump-sum for personal and professional use.

2. School Education: For children under 10 years

• The child will be given admission in the nearest Kendriya Vidyalaya or in a private school as a day scholar.
• If the child is admitted in a private school, the fees as per the RTE norms will be given from the PM CARES.
• PM-CARES will also pay for expenditure on uniform, text books and notebooks.

3. School Education: for children between 11-18 years:

• The child will be given admission in any Central Government residential school such as Sainik School, Navodaya Vidyalaya etc.
• In case the child is to be continued under the care of Guardian/ grandparents/ extended family, then he or she will be given admission in the nearest Kendriya Vidyalaya or in a private school as a day scholar.
• If the child is admitted in a private school, the fees as per the RTE norms will be given from the PM CARES.
• PM CARES will also pay for expenditure on uniform, text books and notebooks.

4. Support for Higher Education:

• The child will be assisted in obtaining education loan for Professional courses / Higher Education in India as per the existing Education Loan norms. The interest on this loan will be paid by the PM CARES.
• As an alternative, scholarship equivalent to the tuition fees / course fees for undergraduate/ vocational courses as per Government norms will be provided to such children under Central or State Government Schemes. For children who are not eligible under the existing scholarship schemes, PM CARES will provide an equivalent scholarship.

5. Health Insurance

• All children will be enrolled as a beneficiary under Ayushman Bharat Scheme (PM-JAY) with a health insurance cover of Rs. 5 lakhs.
• The premium amount for these children till the age of 18 years will be paid by PM CARES.

6. Scholarship

• Total scholarship allowance will be Rs.20,000/- per child per annum to be released at the beginning of every academic year and will comprise of:
  (a) Monthly allowance of Rs. 1,000/-.
  (b) Annual academic allowance of Rs. 8,000/- to cover the cost ofthe books and uniform, shoes and other educational equipment.

How to apply

For online application, visit https://pmcaresforchildren.in/ 

Source : https://pmcaresforchildren.in/