Punjab extends farishtey scheme for victims of war, terrorism

Hindustan Times

09-05-2025

Chandigarh, People affected by war and terrorism will now be included under Punjab's 'farishtey' scheme, which was originally aimed at providing free treatment to accident victims.
A decision to this effect was taken at the cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday.
A spokesperson of the Chief Minister's Office said coverage under the farishtey scheme 2024 has been expanded to provide immediate, hassle-free medical treatment to victims of war and terrorist activities, at government and empanelled private hospitals in the state.
The move is aimed at lowering the mortality and morbidity rates resulting from injuries sustained during war and terrorist activities, and to encourage common people to come forward and help such individuals get timely treatment, he said.
Under the original farishtey scheme, any person who voluntarily rescues accident victims and help save their lives will be considered a 'farishta' and conferred with a commendation certificate and ₹2,000 cash prize.
The scheme applies to all victims of road accidents in Punjab and provides comprehensive treatment to accident victims, without a cap on the cost.
The cabinet has also approved a pilot project to promote kharif maize in three regions, in order to push for crop diversification in the state. The project will be launched in three regions Gurdaspur-Pathankot, Bathinda and Jalandhar-Kapurthala spread over 12,000 hectares.
The government will evolve a foolproof mechanism to ensure marketing of kharif maize to benefit the state's farmers, the spokesperson said.
"The government has decided to buy maize crop at the minimum support price," he said.
In another decision aimed at preserving the rich Punjabi culture, the cabinet gave its consent to bring an ordinance to start bullock cart races in the state. The game was once an integral part of Punjabi culture.
A special clause in the ordinance lays emphasis on ensuring that no bulls are tortured during the race.
The other decisions taken included cover under the Old Pension Scheme for 2,053 state government employees whose joining process started before January 1, 2004, and the installation of high-end 5G-enabled V-Kavach jammers for better security in 13 high-security jails.
These jammers have already been successfully tested and they will be installed in all the jails in the state gradually, the spokesperson said.
The cabinet also approved the transfer of 135 acres of the housing department's land at Faridkot to the industries department.
The land, which originally belonged to a cooperative sugar mill and was transferred to the housing department, has huge potential for industrial use and hence will be developed into an industrial zone, he said.
The creation of a 'Rangla Punjab Fund' was approved in order to give Non-Resident Indians a stake in the state's development. NRIs or resident Indians can contribute to this fund that would give a fillip to the state's growth.
Managed by the finance department, the Rangla Punjab Fund will be used to accelerate growth in education, health, industry and other sectors.
The cabinet also gave green signal to set up a 'centre of excellence for mining' at Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar.
The centre of excellence will assess the area covered under mining and the extent of exploitation being done in the sector.