Thiruvananthapuram: Amid the controversy of the Vigilance finding that undeserving persons have received aid from the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF), let's have a quick look at the procedures to receive aid from the Relief Fund.

Aids allowed under CMDRF

•Financial support for medical treatment of economically weaker sections

•Financial aid to the dependents of those who died in accidents

•Aid for houses and small businesses which do not have insurance coverage, after suffering from loss due to fire accidents

Eligibility criteria for the application to receive aid from CMDRF

1. Annual family income must below Rs 2 lakh (An order to this effect was issued on 2019 February 12)

2. Lifestyle diseases (diabetes, hypertension) and other common diseases will not get financial aid.

3. A person who has received aid from the Distress Relief funds once can reapply only after 2 years. However, in totally deserving cases, additional aid may be granted within this time period too.

4. If the aid applied is for a surgical procedure, the date of surgery must be mentioned in the medical certificate.

The authority who can allow the aid and the maximum limit

District Collector Rs 10000

Special Secretary Rs 15000

Revenue Minister Rs 25000

Chief Minister Rs 3 lakh

(Aid above Rs 3 lakh will be allowed only with the Cabinet approval)

Documents necessary for the application
A copy of the ration card including the name of the beneficiary and the first page of the bank passbook must be attached along with the application.

Besides, if the assistance applied is for help with medical treatment, the medical certificate issued by the treating doctor within 6 months must be included. If the support is for financial help for dependents following accidental death, copies of the Police’s First Information Report (FIR), post-mortem report and the death certificate must be uploaded on the portal.

The application must be filed within one year from the date of accidental death.

The online procedures for the application
The applications are received and handled through the official web portal www.cmo.kerala.gov.in.

The applications can be filed online in the following methods:

1. The applicant can submit the application online directly.

2. Through Akshaya Centres.

3. Through the offices of MPs and MLAs.

4. To the Chief Minister’s office by post.

The Village Officer would get the applications submitted online for verification through the inbox in the Beneficiary list in the CMO portal.

The Village officer verifies whether required documents have been attached along with the applications and ensures that the Bank account number, IFSC code and such details furnished are correct.

The valid application is scrutinised, the identity and income slab are endorsed and then handed over to the Tahsildar.

If any of the required documents are missing, the application must be moved to the queue titled missing documents. The missing documents must be collected after contacting the applicant and then handed over to the Tahsildar.

If the application received is of another Village Office jurisdiction, but has mistakenly landed in the inbox, it can be sent to the CMDRF Help Desk using the revert option.

The applications received from the Village Offices will be meticulously verified by the Tahsildhars. If there are any flaws and errors found, they would be flagged clearly and sent back using the revert option to the Village Officers for necessary corrections.

The applications received from the Taluk offices will then be scrutinised by the District Collectors and the undeserving applications for financial assistance would be denied.

The District Collector himself can allow up to Rs 10000 for medical treatment from the Relief Funds.