Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced a scholarship scheme as a new component of the recently launched KALIA (Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation) scheme on Sunday.
Addressing a farmers’ conclave in Keonjhar district, Mr. Patnaik said that the children of the beneficiaries of KALIA will be provided scholarship under the KALIA Chhatra Bruti programme for pursuing higher education.
The Chief Minister said that under the scholarship scheme, the State government will bear the educational expenses of the children of KALIA beneficiaries who are studying in government professional colleges on merit basis.
Mr. Patnaik said he had launched the scholarship programme under the popular KALIA scheme as he wanted the children to pursue higher studies in disciplines such as medicine, engineering, management and law.
The State government is implementing the KALIA scheme for the benefit of the small and marginal farmers, sharecroppers and landless agricultural households.
During his visit to Keonjhar, the Chief Minister also inaugurated projects worth ₹66 crore and laid foundation stones for several projects worth ₹2,100 crore.
Mission Shakti
Mr. Patnaik, who has been focusing on welfare of farmers and women ahead of the upcoming simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in the State, addressed a Mission Shakti conclave at Rairangpur in Mayurbhanj district earlier in the day.
Thousands women, members of self-help groups under the Mission Scheme programme, attended the meeting where Mr. Patnaik inaugurated projects worth ₹45 crore and laid foundation stones for projects worth ₹960 crore.
A total of 7,453 SHGs formed since April 1, 2017, were provided with seed money of ₹15,000 each on the occasion.
Mr. Patnaik announced that the government hospital at Rairangpur will be developed and it will be made a 100-bed hospital in public-private partnership mode. A stadium with modern facilities will be built at Rairangpur, he announced.
