The Orissa High Court has directed the State Government to expeditiously grant Rs 50 lakh ex-gratia and family pension to a widow whose husband, a police constable died of Covid-19 during duty when the pandemic was at its peak.

Though the state government has announced an ex- gratia of Rs 50 lakh for families of all frontline workers who die while performing COVID duty, the family of the deceased Satyabadi Dehury, former Constable in Odisha Police Service, was denied the ex-gratia compensation.

Satyabadi Dehury was appointed as a Constable on 5 May, 1999 in Odisha Police Service. He was tested COVID positive on 25 August, 2021 while on duty. While undergoing treatment at Government COVID Care Centre in Bhubaneswar, the treating Medical Officer declared him dead on 12 October, 2021 at about 10.15 P.M. Petitioner was always exposed to infection as most of the COVID-19 related deployment was being done from the said office.

Being a part of police reserve office Angul, Dehury was always exposed to infection as most of the COVID-19 related deployment was done from the office which is a COVID-19 management related duty.

The Home Department had rejected the application of Bharati Satpathy, widow of the dead constable, while arguing that duty in reserve police did not entitle Covid warrior status.

The Superintendent of Police, Angul, who was the disciplinary authority of the husband of the petitioner, had already certified that Satyabadi Dehury was a constable of police from 16 August, 2020 to 25th August, 2021 and he was assigned duty as Reserve Officer to update the Service Books and all other HRMS related works.

“In view of the above, there cannot be any iota of doubt that the petitioner being the widow of late Satyabadi Dehury, who died due to COVID-19 while on active line of duty, is entitled to ex-gratia of Rs 50 lakh and special family pension as per the notification issued then by the Government”, the Single Bench Judge of Justice K R Mohapatra observed.

It is directed that the Superintendent of Police, Angul and Director General of Police, Odisha, as well as Additional Chief Secretary Home Department shall take prompt steps to grant ex-gratia of Rs 50 lakh as well as special family pension to the petitioner as expeditiously as possible preferably within a period of six months, Justice Mohapatra directed in the judgment.