TRICHY: The state government is planning an accident insurance scheme for schoolchildren, minister for school education K A Sengottaiyan said here on Saturday."The insurance for students is being planned for the first time in the country and discussions are on with chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami. An announcement will be made soon," he told reporters.The minister did not elaborate on whether the scheme would cover only government school students or will include children of all institutions, including aided and pri vate ones. There are more than 1.4 crore government school students in the state.Officials said the scheme was planned against the backdrop of Tamil Nadu accounting for the largest number of road accidents in the country.Data from the Union ministry of road transport and highways also shows the state coming on top in the number of accidents near educational institutions such as schools and colleges, with 5,010 cases in 2016 killing 1,207 and injuring 6,233. The state government already offers health cover to all its employees and more than 1.5 crore below-poverty-line families.

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