Bhubaneswar: The State Government said on Saturday that it would provide Rs 1,000 as transportation cost to pregnant women from inaccessible areas to facilitate their institutional delivery.
The announcement came after several incidences of pregnant women being carried on shoulders or cots or walking to reach hospitals for delivery came to fore.
As per the new scheme, the pregnant women reaching hospitals by arranging vehicles on their own would get Rs 1,000. The cost wouldl be covered under the SAMPURNA scheme and over Rs 6 crore would be spent annually.
“The Government will provide financial support for pregnant women from difficult villages where 102/108 ambulances or four-wheeler vehicles cannot reach,” Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said while reviewing the activities of the National Health Mission.
As per an initial assessment report received from districts, 7,853 villages in all 30 districts would be covered under the scheme. It is expected that more than 60,000 pregnant women would be benefited annually.
The Chief Minister also announced that the Government is launching an ASHA Kalyan Yojana which would benefit more than 47,000 ASHA Workers in the State.
This scheme would provide assured activities to ensure a monthly incentive of Rs 1,000 to each ASHA Worker, provision of one-time honorarium of Rs 10,000 to an ASHA Worker on attaining age of 60 years, provision of compensation of Rs 1 lakh for death, enhanced compensation for permanent disability up to Rs 1 lakh and support under the ASHA education programme.
The Government would spend more than Rs 56 crore on the scheme per annum.
The Chief Minister also launched an NHM Employees’ Welfare Fund which provides for compensation of up to Rs 6 lakh for death or permanent disability above 80 per cent and compensation of up to Rs 2.5 lakh for partial disability.
It would also provide for reimbursement of the cost of medical expenses up to Rs 3 lakh in a year for the critical health condition, said Patnaik.
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