PARVARISH Scheme for Children Affected or Orphaned due to COVID (Chandigarh)

What is the PARVARISH scheme in Chandigarh?

PARVARISH is a scheme of the Department of Social Welfare, Women and Child Development, Chandigarh Administration for the development of children affected or orphaned due to COVID. The department states the aim as ensuring "all-round development of children affected/orphaned due to COVID and to provide an additional & comprehensive support for their well being". The word parvarish means upbringing, and that is what the scheme funds: money for daily needs, a lump sum held in trust until adulthood, and the cost of education right through to a professional degree.

PARVARISH is delivered on the ground by the District Child Protection Unit (DCPU) and the Union Territory Child Protection Society (UTCPS), with approvals given by the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. The Chandigarh Child and Women Development Corporation Ltd opens the fixed deposits. Every disbursement is required to follow the principle of the "best interest of the child" under Section 3(iv) of the Juvenile Justice Act.

The scheme divides children into four categories, and the benefits differ sharply between them. Reading the right category is the single most important thing an applicant family can do.

Who is eligible for PARVARISH in Chandigarh?

Four conditions run across all categories:

• The child must be a resident of UT Chandigarh, proved by the parent's Aadhaar card, driving licence, voter ID, electricity bill or similar.
• The child must be below 18 years of age, proved by a birth certificate or a certificate from the head of the educational or technical institution last attended. Where no valid age proof exists, age is determined under the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015.
• The reason for the parent's death must be COVID, established by the death certificate or by proof of the parent being COVID positive not more than 3 months prior to the death.
• The case must be assessed by the DCPU and approved by the Child Welfare Committee.

The four categories

• Category I, COVID orphaned children, or children who lost one parent to COVID where the surviving parent has surrendered the child.
• Category II, COVID orphaned children living with guardians or extended families.
• Category III: children who lost one parent to COVID and live with the surviving parent or extended family. This is the only category with an income test: annual family income must be below Rs 5 lakh.
• Category IV, COVID positive children. The child must fall under "child in need of care and protection" as defined in Section 2(14) of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, with the DCPU assessing each case and seeking CWC approval.

You cannot apply if:

• The child is not a resident of UT Chandigarh. Such children are transferred to their parent state in accordance with the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015.
• The parent's death was not due to COVID, or COVID cannot be established by a death certificate or a positive test within 3 months of the death.
• The child is 18 or older at the time of entry, subject to the extension rules described below.
• Under Category III, the annual family income is Rs 5 lakh or above.
• Under Category IV, the case predates the notification of the scheme, the department states that cases prior to the notification shall not be considered.

Applicability dates. Children under Categories I, II and III who lost their parent or parents on or after 1 March 2020 are eligible for financial assistance. Children under Category IV affected by COVID after 1 January 2021 are eligible for financial assistance from the date of application.

What does PARVARISH pay in Chandigarh?

Category I, children in a Child Care Institution

• The child is rehabilitated in a Child Care Institution of UT Chandigarh on the orders of the Child Welfare Committee, with boarding, lodging and medical expenses borne by the Chandigarh Administration.
• Counselling and grief counselling and need-based therapeutic interventions are provided to help the child overcome the trauma.
• A fixed deposit of Rs 3,00,000 is made in the child's name within 60 days of admission to the Child Care Institution, by the Chandigarh Child and Women Development Corporation Ltd. The child can withdraw it after attaining 21 years of age.
• If the child is eventually placed under family-based care through the Child Adoption Programme, the fixed deposit is not handed to the child and is deposited in the department's bank account to protect the confidentiality of the child's background.
• The child is enrolled in educational institutions and vocational courses at par with other children, and the Department of Social Welfare bears the educational and vocational expenses.
• The DCPU and the Child Care Institution must make sincere efforts to place the child in non-institutional care, Foster Care or Child Adoption, so that the child grows up in a family.

Categories II and III — children living with family or guardians

• Monthly financial support of Rs 5,000 to meet nutritional and recreational needs, till the age of 18. If the child is unemployed after 18, the monthly assistance is extended till the age of 21 on the basis of an assessment by the DCPU.
• Free education in Government-run schools of UT Chandigarh.
• For children in private schools, classes 1 to 8, annual financial support per child at the rate the Department of Education reimburses per child per month under the EWS quota.
• For children in private schools, classes 9 to 12, that support is increased to 1.25 times the prevailing EWS reimbursement rate, in recognition of higher costs at senior secondary level.
• Up to Rs 25,000 a year for a short-term diploma of up to one year at a recognised institute in Chandigarh or anywhere in the country.
• Up to Rs 50,000 a year, covering admission, tuition and examination fees, for graduation or an equivalent three-year degree.
• Up to Rs 1,00,000 a year for a professional degree.
• The DCPU facilitates the extension of benefits under other welfare schemes of UT Chandigarh departments, and provides counselling and therapeutic support.

Category IV; COVID positive children in the community

• Rs 2,500 per month for 3 months to meet nutritional needs.
• The assistance is to be given by the DCPU within 10 days, subject to CWC approval after DCPU assessment and recommendation.

What conditions must be met to keep receiving PARVARISH benefits?

The department lists these conditions explicitly, and families lose money most often by ignoring them:

1. All financial assistance is given by the DCPU subject to approval of the Child Welfare Committee after assessment and recommendation by the DCPU.
2. Admission or enrolment receipt and fee structure of the private school, college, university or technical institution must be submitted.
3. Regular follow-ups are conducted by the DCPU, and the family must cooperate with them.
4. 75 per cent attendance in school, college or technical institution is required.
5. The child must not fail more than once in classes 9 to 12.
6. The maximum age for annual financial assistance for higher education; graduation, a three-year degree or a professional degree: is 25 years.
7. Annual financial assistance is released on an annual or half-yearly basis as per the course design.

How to apply for PARVARISH in Chandigarh

1. Contact the District Child Protection Unit. The department's own instruction is that eligible families may contact the District Child Protection Unit (DCPU), First Floor, Snehalaya Building, Maloya, phone 0172-2643654.
2. Take the death certificate and the COVID evidence. The death certificate of the parent or parents, or proof that the parent was COVID positive not more than 3 months before death, is the document the whole claim turns on.
3. Take the child's age proof and the family's Chandigarh residence proof. A birth certificate or the last institution's certificate, plus the parent's Aadhaar, driving licence, voter ID or electricity bill.
4. For Category III, take income proof showing annual family income below Rs 5 lakh.
5. Cooperate with the DCPU assessment. A DCPU officer will assess the case and make a recommendation to the Child Welfare Committee, which grants the approval.
6. Open or produce the bank account into which the monthly support will be paid, and, for Category I children, confirm that the Rs 3,00,000 fixed deposit has been opened within 60 days of admission.
7. Submit school or college papers each year; enrolment receipt, fee structure and attendance, to keep the education component flowing.

There is no online application portal for PARVARISH and no fee. The Union Territory Child Protection Society staff, including its Programme Manager and Programme Officers, can be reached through the department if the DCPU is not responding.

Why PARVARISH claims are rejected, and how to fix them

• Death not linked to COVID on paper. The death certificate may not name COVID. Produce the RT-PCR or test report showing the parent was COVID positive within 3 months before death; the scheme explicitly allows this alternative proof.
• No valid age proof for the child. The scheme does not treat this as fatal. Where the child has no valid age proof, age is determined under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 to ask the DCPU to initiate age determination rather than giving up.
• Residence not established. A parent's Aadhaar, driving licence, voter ID or electricity bill is what the department asks for. A child who is genuinely not from Chandigarh is transferred to the parent state, not abandoned.
• Attendance below 75 per cent, or failing more than once in classes 9 to

12. Education support stops. Raise the attendance issue with the DCPU during a follow-up visit before the year ends.

• Category III income above Rs 5 lakh. Only Category III carries this test; check whether the child is in fact a Category II case, which has no published income ceiling.

Help and grievance redressal

• District Child Protection Unit, Chandigarh: 0172-2643654, First Floor, Snehalaya Building, Maloya.
• Union Territory Child Protection Society: through the department, with the Director Social Welfare as Member Secretary on 0172-2700372.
• Department office: Department of Social Welfare, Women and Child Development, Additional Town Hall Building, 3rd Floor, Sector 17-C, Chandigarh 160017, email dirswd-chd[at]nic[dot]in.
• Women and Child Helpline: 181, mobile 9915023456, Sector 19-B, Chandigarh.
• Chandigarh Commission for Protection of Child Rights is linked from the department website for complaints about the treatment of a child.
• Related non-institutional care schemes run by the same department are the Sponsorship Scheme and the Foster Care Scheme, and a family that does not qualify under PARVARISH should ask the DCPU whether either fits.