In a major relief to lakhs of people, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday announced financial assistance of Rs 5,000 to each construction worker hit by the coronavirus lockdown that has halted construction work, besides other non-essential activities, in the capital.
Around 4 lakh construction workers are registered with Construction Workers Welfare Board (CWWB) of the Delhi government. All of them will be provided the financial assistance from CWWB Fund.
According to sources, the government is also considering developing a mechanism for identification and fund disbursal for those construction workers who are not registered with the Board and other daily wagers who have lost their livelihood due to the unprecedented lockdown.
The government is also increasing the number of night shelters so that those who have no source of earning now can get food. It will also distribute food at different places for people affected by the lockdown.
In a digital press conference, Kejriwal said that no new case of coronavirus had been reported in the last 40 hours in Delhi. But, leaving nothing to chance, the Delhi government has constituted a team of five doctors which will review the city’s preparedness for handling the situation if we reach the third stage of community transmission.
The committee will submit a report within 24 hours to the chief minister on the steps required to deal with this and suggest ways to strengthen the system. “We have started preparations to build a foolproof health system to combat the situation if we ever get into stage three of this pandemic. We have to be fully prepared in terms of medical support,” Kejriwal said.
“In the last 40 hours, there has not been a single new coronavirus positive case in Delhi. Earlier, we had 30 such positive cases, and among them, many people are getting better and going home. Till now five people have survived and gone home. Currently, we have only 23 positive cases in Delhi,” Kejriwal said, asking people to observe the lockdown strictly since otherwise cases may increase.
Kejriwal urged people not to discriminate against those who work in airlines, hospitals and other coronavirus sensitive jobs. “I have received complaints that somewhere in Delhi people did not allow a pilot to enter the colony because they thought he could be affected by coronavirus and the same has happened in some other cases. This is something absolutely unacceptable….doctors, nurses, pilots and air hostesses are our responsibility… These are the people who are working relentlessly to give you proper medical help and support and they should be welcomed,” he said.
In response to another call by the chief minister, many landlords have announced waiving of rent for tenants for now. Kejriwal named several such people and appealed to others to do so. One such landlord, Raj Bainsla, and others have announced publicly that they will not collect rent for the month of March. Tens of thousands of tenants in Delhi work in the unorganised sector and their livelihood has been badly hit.
Kejriwal urged people to send those who are unable to get food due to the lockdown to night shelters. “We have already started distributing food at all the night shelters where any person can come and eat. Many people have said that they will ensure not a single person in their area stays hungry,” said Kejriwal.
