Srinagar, June 24 : Jammu and Kashmir’s Minister for Health, Education and Social Welfare, Sakina Itoo, on Tuesday said that the government is actively working to make the Marriage Assistance Scheme more accessible by removing the qualification bar currently in place.
Itoo said that the scheme is already operational and beneficiaries are receiving assistance, but qualification requirement added two years ago has caused concerns.
“When you are giving marriage assistance, then what’s the purpose of a qualification bar? The girl has to get married, education shouldn’t be a hurdle in this,” she said, adding, “I’m working on a proposal to remove this condition very soon.”
She added that under the revised scheme, announced by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in his budget speech, the assistance amount has been increased from ?50,000 to ?75,000 for families covered under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY).
“This is already being implemented,” she said. “People whose cases were sanctioned earlier are getting the funds.”
On the healthcare front, Itoo also flagged off two new ICTC (Integrated Counseling and Testing Centre) vans each costing ?64 lakh to improve awareness and testing access in remote areas for diseases like HIV/AIDS.
“Jammu and Kashmir may have a relatively low 0.6% AIDS rate, but even that is unfortunate. Our goal is to make the region completely disease-free,” she said.
She urged people to come forward without fear or stigma. “People hesitate to report symptoms out of nervousness. But if it is diagnosed in time, we can treat it and stop its spread,” she said.
She added that the outreach programme will extend to Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh, with more mobile testing and awareness camps to follow.
When asked about complaints regarding hospital hygiene and high fees, the minister assured that such matters would be investigated promptly.
“If there’s any genuine complaint, we will definitely look into it,” she said.(KNS)
