Milk and eggs will be provided on all working days in anganwadis; minister announces

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Finance Minister K N Balagopal announced that milk and eggs will be provided on all working days in anganwadis. The announcement was made in the final budget of the second Pinarayi Vijayan government. An amount of Rs 80.90 crore has been allocated for the scheme. A total of Rs 484.87 crore has been set aside for the welfare of women and children.

The minister also announced an accident insurance scheme for students from Classes 1 to 10. He said the scheme is expected to cost Rs 15 crore annually, and the required amount has been allocated in the budget. Earlier in the day, Balagopal told the media that the budget would give equal importance to children and senior citizens.

In another major announcement, the finance minister said victims of road accidents will be eligible for free treatment for the first five days. The scheme, called the Life Saver project, will be available in government hospitals and selected private hospitals. 15 crores have been allocated for this project. Health insurance was also announced for families not covered under the Karunya scheme. An amount of Rs 50 crore has been allocated for this purpose.

The budget also announced salary revisions for ASHA workers and anganwadi employees. The minister said the monthly salary of anganwadi workers has been increased by Rs 1,000, and the daily wage of cooking staff in schools has been raised by Rs 25.