Maharashtra announces 'Covid-free village' contest, winners to get Rs 50 lakh

Mumbai: In an effort to encourage the villagers to follow Covid-19 protocols to limit the spread of the virus, the Maharashtra government has announced a contest with an award of Rs 50 lakh for the village which bags the first position, informed Hasan Mushrif, State Rural Development Minister.

The villages which come second and third will get Rs 25 lakh and Rs 15 lakh respectively.

The prizes will be awarded to a total of three gram panchayats from each of the six revenue divisions.

The "village">Covid-free village" contest requires the villages to meet 22 standards. The villages will compete for 50 marks, based on the assessment of the work done between June 1, 2021 and March 31, 2022.

In the recent past, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Hasan Mushrif had appreciated the remarkable work of three gram panchayats with regard to Covid-19 norms. Thus, the announcement of a monetary reward was made to instill a feeling of competitiveness to achieve the target of "village">Covid-free village" .

As per the public health department of Maharashtra, the state recorded 15,169 new cases, 285 deaths and 29,270 recoveries over a period of 24 hours on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the recovery rate in the state stands at 94.54 per cent.