PNS | DEHRADUN
The State Sports and Youth Welfare minister Rekha Arya announced that the State government would provide Rs 50,000 to assist the marriages of daughters of Prantiya Rakshak Dal (PRD) jawans. She made this statement during the ceremonial parade held on Wednesday to celebrate PRD’s foundation day.
Speaking on the occasion, Arya further said that PRD’s foundation day had not been regularly celebrated in the past. “However, under the direction of the chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, the State government decided in 2022 its annual celebration,” she said. She also instructed the department officials to organise commemorative events in every district.
Lauding PRD’s contributions in various situations such as elections, Char Dham Yatra and law-enforcement challenges, she said that the unit deserves proper celebration of its foundation day. “The upcoming year marks the silver jubilee of the State’s foundation and the involvement of PRD jawans is significant,” she added.
She said that the government has taken a slew of long-awaited decisions to enhance the lot of these jawans. “These changes include the amendment of the Act to extend the age limit of service from 18 to 60 years. Additionally, the female PRD jawans will now receive maternity leave as a result of these amendments. They will be entitled to 180 days of maternity leave without any salary deduction during this period,” she said.
Arya reaffirmed the State government’s commitment to supporting the families of PRD jawans in their weal and woe. “Scholarships will be provided to the children of these jawans which will further support their education and future,” she said.
She added that since 2022, the State government has provided jobs to a total of 101 dependents of PRD jawans. “Previously, there was no such security measure for them,” she said, adding that they would continue to support the families of the jawans who are injured or killed in the line of duty with utmost sensitivity and responsibility.
During the foundation day celebration, she distributed cheques of assistance of Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs one lakh to the dependents of the jawans who lost their lives in various incidents and Rs 50,000 each to those injured in such incidents. Further, she announced that a vocational training centre for retiring PRD jawans would be established soon.
