Justice CV Karthikeyan, therefore, rejected a petition filed by a deceased nurse’s husband, seeking a compensation of ₹50 lakh from the Tamil Nadu (TN) government.
The nurse had passed away after contracting COVID while at work.
“A person can get that benefit of that scheme either under the Central government or under the State government scheme. He cannot seek a relief from both the Central government and from the State government scheme,” the Court said.
The Court noted that the petitioner, K Arunachalam had already received a sum of ₹50 lakh under the Central government’s Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP) insurance scheme for frontline health workers fighting COVID-19, following the death of his wife K Thangalakshmi.
As per Arunachalam’s petition, Thangalakshmi, who was a staff nurse at the Rajiv Gandhi government hospital in Chennai, was posted on COVID duty in April 21, 2020. While on duty, she was infected with COVID-19. After she recovered and her medical leave ended, Thangalakshmi rejoined work at the COVID ward on June 1, 2020.
However, she contracted COVID again and breathed her last on June 14, 2020.
At the time, benefits of PMGKP insurance scheme were extended to Arunachalam.
However, he approached the Madras High Court claiming that at the time of his wife’s death, the TN government too had a scheme that paid ₹50 lakh as compensation to the kin of frontline health workers who died of COVID-19. Arunachalam, therefore, prayed the State government too be directed to pay such compensation amount to him.
The TN government, however, opposed his plea saying that Arunachalam had received the amount sanctioned by the Centre and that the State had also paid him all terminal benefits payable in the present case.
Source: Barandbench
