Woman and Child Development Minister Nirmala Bhuria on Tuesday announced the state cabinet's decision to provide support and financial assistance to rape victims, the move received immediate applause from BJP leaders, including State General Secretary and Parliamentarian Kavita Patidar.

Announcing the cabinet decision, Minister Bhuria stated that victims under the age of 16 will now receive support and financial assistance from the Nirbhaya Fund in accordance with Sections 4 and 6 of the amended Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

She explained that the scheme aims to provide integrated support and financial assistance to victims who are pregnant at a single location.

The scheme will ensure the provision of immediate, emergency, and non-emergency services to the victims, as well as long-term rehabilitation facilities such as education, police assistance, and medical care, including maternity, newborn, and infant care. Additionally, psychological and legal assistance will also be provided, Bhuria elaborated.

Shedding light on the administration of the move, the minister said that this scheme will be operated by her ministry as a 100 percent centrally funded programme under the Nirbhaya Fund. Each district in the state will be allocated Rs. 10 lakh for operationalising the cabinet decision.

The district child protection officials and district collectors will be able to use the corpus based on a scrutiny of the incidents. The state cabinet initiative received immediate applause from senior party functionary and MP Kavita Patidar, who expressed her gratitude to Chief Minister Mohan Yadav for his sensitivity towards the plight of the victims.

She stated that the move will ensure the dignity of the victims and underscores the BJP government's commitment to respecting women and their right to a dignified life. Kavita Patidar further emphasised that the Bharatiya Janata Party government is committed to respecting women and daughters, as well as providing them with the right to live with dignity.

The state government’s decision regarding the rehabilitation of rape victims is a step in this direction.

Speaking of a separate decision taken by the state cabinet, Patidar noted that the initiation of the recruitment process for nearly 100,000 positions before the end of the year will not only provide employment opportunities for the youth but will also improve the functioning of the state government apparatus.