THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Setting a new example, the Kerala government has announced an accident insurance scheme for students from classes 1-12. An annual sum of Rs 15 crore will be needed towards this, Finance Minister KN Balagopal announced in the Budget presentation on Thursday.
TNIE had earlier reported that the scheme will be implemented for the students from government, aided, and unaided state syllabus schools, and will be presented in the budget session.
The state government will remit the insurance premium for all students falling under the scheme set to be rolled out from the next academic year. The initial discussions regarding this were taken after the slew of incidents of accidents in schools, including the electrocution of a 13-year-old boy, Mithun, at the Thevalakkara Boys High School in Kollam.
A preliminary analysis of the move was earlier done by the insurance department following the minister's instruction. While officials from the department informed that insurance companies in the public sector with whom the department has co-insurance connections will facilitate the process, the minister informed the assembly that the necessary prerequisites for the scheme have already been met.
Education Minister V Sivankutty welcomed this move and remarked in a Facebook post that the department is well-equipped to implement the same.