Patnaik launches health card distribution in Bargarh district, inaugurates projects

I salute the skills of the farmers and weavers of Bargarh. The chief minister said that 3.5 crore people of 96 lakh families across the state would benefit from the Smart Health Card.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday distributed smart health cards under Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) to beneficiaries in Bargarh district, amid protests by the opposition BJP over the kidnap and murder case of a woman teacher. Around 3.64 lakh people of the district will benefit from the smart health cards in Bargarh, which is the 11th district in the state where such facilities have been extended so far. Patnaik had started the distribution of smart health cards from Malkangiri district in September this year. During the visit, Patnaik also inaugurated projects worth Rs 300 crore and 71 reconstructed schools in Bijepur under the 5T initiative.

The 5T (Teamwork, technology, transparency, time leading to transformation) initiative was started by the state government in the Health and Home departments in October last year. Patnaik said projects worth Rs 2,500 crore are in different stages of implementation in the district which includes the Gangadhar Meher Lift Irrigation Project worth Rs 2,090 crore. “The project will be completed by September 2023 and farmers can get water from it”, the chief minister said.

Patnaik said Bargarh district is the soil of Goddess Lakshmi as it is the rice bowl of Odisha. Praising weavers and farmers for their contribution to the development of the district, the chief minister said, “The Bargarh weavers have given the world Sambalpuri sarees. I salute the skills of the farmers and weavers of Bargarh.” The chief minister said that 3.5 crore people of 96 lakh families across the state would benefit from the Smart Health Card. “It will help our poor people get rid of many health problems. Now people can get better treatment at 200 major hospitals of the state and across the country by holding this card,” he said. Bargarh’s BJP MP Suresh Pujari skipped the function on health grounds while his party men staged a demonstration opposing the chief minister’s visit to the district demanding the removal of Minister of State for Home, D S Mishra for his alleged links with the prime accused in the Kalahandi woman teacher’s kidnap and murder case.

Each family can avail of treatment facilities up to Rs 5 lakh per annum under the Smart Health Card and the limit is Rs 10 lakh in the case of women family members.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)