More than 11.28 lakh Kudumbashree women have been provided life insurance coverage through the Jeevan Deepam Oruma neighbourhood group (NHG) insurance scheme, Minister for Local Self-Government M.B. Rajesh has said.
Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday to announce enrolment of 10 lakh Kudumbashree women in the Jeevan Deepam Oruma insurance scheme here on Wednesday, the Minister said the scheme provided insurance coverage at low premium to Kudumbashree NHG women. Financial assistance would be provided under the scheme in the event of natural or accidental death of an NHG member. Insurance coverage would be available even if a member suffered permanent disability in an accident.
Earlier, if an NHG member died after the NHG together had taken a linkage loan, other members had to take over the loan of the deceased member. However, on receiving the insurance cover under Jeevan Deepam Oruma, this situation could be avoided. The loan of the deceased would be deducted from the insurance money they get and transferred to the NHG bank account. The rest of the money would go to the beneficiaries of the deceased.
The scheme in which those in the 18-74 age group could enrol was being jointly implemented by the Kudumbashree, LIC, and the State Insurance department. The annual premium was ₹174.
Mr. Rajesh said Kerala had become the first State to figure in the SPARK (Systematic Progressive Analytical Real-time Ranking) rankings for the sixth consecutive time for its implementation of the National Urban Livelihoods Mission scheme. The award money totalled ₹85 crore. Kudumbashree is the nodal agency for implementation of NULM in 93 urban local bodies in the State.
As many as 2,893 NHGS had been formed in urban areas under the NULM; 24,860 people provided skill training, and 13,736 given employment, he said. As many as 5,704 individual enterprises and 1,187 group enterprises had been started.
The Minister said a campaign was being launched to increase subscription for the Kudumbashree official YouTube channel. The campaign named Million Plus was intended to make 46 lakh Kudumbashree members and their families and the public subscribers of the Kudumbashree YouTube channel so as to take various Kudumbashree activities down to the grassroots level for their effective implementation. At present, the channel has 1.39 lakh subscribers. The target is for 10 lakh subscribers by Kudumbashree day on May 17, he said.
Elaborate programmes had been planned on May 15 to 17 in connection with the Kudumbashree silver jubilee. Radio Sree, Kudumbashree’s community radio, would be launched on the occasion, Mr. Rajesh said.
He presented a certificate to Ernakulam that had enrolled maximum number of women in Jeevan Deepam Oruma insurance scheme.
He also gave away certificates to city mission managers, multi-task personnel, and community organisers who carried out best field-level activities for implementing NULM.
Kudumbashree Executive Director Jafar Malik, LIC regional manager P. Radhakrishnan, State Insurance Director Shaji Wilson were present at the press meet.
