Rs 50 lakh for Covid warrior Manjit Singh’s kin

Barnala, May 9

Two years after Covid warrior Manjit Singh died of heart attack while bringing back devotees from Sri Hazur Sahib in Maharashtra, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today directed the state Finance Department to release Rs 50 lakh in compensation for the family.

Indebted to CM Mann

Manjit was the only earning hand of our family. We are indebted to the CM. Mahinder Kaur, mother of deceased driver

“Manjit was the only earning hand of our family and after his death, our problems have multiplied. We welcome CM’s order to release of Rs 50 lakh relief,” said Mahinder Kaur, mother of the deceased.

She said her family owned less than an acre of farmland, while after her son’s death, the family had been finding it hard to make ends meet.

“Mann as the Member of Parliament had raised the issue at the time of his death. We are indebted to him,” said Mahinder, a resident of Badbar village in Barnala.

Village residents said the family was unaware of the development when they approached them on Monday.

The previous Congress government had given Rs 10 lakh to the family of Manjit, who had died on April 26, 2020, while on special duty to bring back stranded Sikh pilgrims to Punjab from Sri Hazur Sahib, Nanded, amid national lockdown owing to Covid.

This had led to statewide protests by the Punjab wing of the AAP, which had sought Rs 50 lakh for the family of the 38-year-old driver. — TNS

Rs 3L aid for families of police martyrs

• DGP VK Bhawra paid tributes to Punjab Police martyrs, who sacrificed their lives safeguarding residents during Covid, at a state-level event in Phillaur on Monday
• Terming their sacrifice “remarkable and unforgettable”, the DGP honoured the kin of martyrs by handing over cheques of Rs 3 lakh each as financial aid.