Subhadra Yojana: Odisha govt seeks partial funding from Centre

Bhubaneswar:  The Odisha government has demanded partial funding from the Centre for the Subhadra Yojana for promoting women’s welfare.

Deputy Chief Minister KV Singh Deo demanded for higher allocations in several sectors, including some flagships schemes, in the pre-budget meeting chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi on Saturday.

Under the Subhadra Yojana, the state government would pay Rs 50,000 to every eligible woman in the state. It was an election promise of the BJP in Odisha.

“The state government is in the process of rolling out Subhadra Yojana, under which every woman will receive a cash voucher of Rs 50,000 to be spent over a period of two years. This is an innovative initiative aimed at empowering women and enhancing entrepreneurship among women,” KV said.

He sought partial support from the Centre for implementation of the path-breaking initiative.

Singh Deo also raised the demand for second AIIMS at Sambalpur.

Although AIIMS-Bhubaneswar is catering to the secondary and tertiary healthcare needs of coastal Odisha and neighbouring states, a second AIIMS at Sambalpur is needed to cater to the patients of the western part of Odisha in view of the patient load in the medical colleges and hospitals, he said.

Singh Deo sought allocation of funds for 5 lakh houses under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) in 2024-25 and the 348-km coastal highway project under Bharatmala Pariyojana and 111-km Odisha Capital Region Ring Road (CRRR) project having six-lane access-controlled highway around Bhubaneswar and Cuttack city by NHAI on priority basis for socio-economic growth.