Bhubaneswar: Acknowledging the request of a tribal lady from Malkangiri district, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Wednesday announced that the health coverage benefits for the women under the Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) have been enhanced to `7 lakh per year from `5 lakh.
During the meeting of Ama Gaon Ama Bikash programme, Mamata Padiami of Kalimela area in Malkangiri district raised concerns over health issues plaguing women in rural areas and requested the Chief Minister to enhance the healthcare assistance amount for women under BSKY.
Talking to the media here at the Secretariat, Naveen said, “Today I had a discussion with people of eight districts while holding the Ama Gaon Ama Bikash programme. A lady named Mamata from Malkangiri district told us that we should enhance the benefits under BSKY programme for women from `5 lakh to `7 lakh. I’ve taken note of her suggestion. Now, women will receive `7 lakh instead of `5 lakh. This will immensely benefit our mothers and sisters.”
“Odisha stands for women. This is evident from the various welfare programmes – including Mission Shakti, Mamata, Khusi, land rights and 50 per cent reservation in panchayats, free bicycles and hostels for girls undertaken by our government,” said the Chief Minister in a Tweeter post.
The enhanced BSKY coverage is yet another step for women and also for healthy, happy and empowered Odisha, he added.
The BJD government claimed that Odisha is the first ever state in the country to have a health assurance scheme of `5 lakh per annum andit has been enhanced to `7 lakh for the women.
Notably, the Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana has already been announced by the Chief Minister June 12 this year. The scheme ensures health coverage of `5 lakh for each family (five members). Now, another `2 lakh has been assured for the women.
More than 3.5 crore people including 1.5 crore women (all age groups) of 70 lakh families will benefit from this scheme. The state government will bear the entire cost for it. This scheme will be implemented with effect from August 15 this year.
While the Naveen government’s move to provide health benefits to its people has been praised by netizens on Tweeter, the opposition Congress and BJP are vehement critics of the programme.
“Let me take an opportunity to show the mirror to the BJD government over the status of women in Odisha. Just yesterday, a woman delivered a baby in an auto rickshaw, as ambulance failed to turn up. Paid campaigns can’t whitewash BJD’s failures,” Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Niranjan Patnaik tweeted.
Stating the efforts of the BJD government are just eyewash, Niranjan pointed that there are many such instances, including rapes of minor girls, ambulance failure, absence of adequate healthcare services for women leading to delivery on roads and auto-rickshaws. He said many other schemes by this government have remained just on papers.
The state BJP spokesperson Golok Mohapatra also echoed Niranjan’s views and slammed the government for making such announcements without ensuring basic healthcare facilities for women. “Without having any budgetary provision, how can the government implement such a scheme?” he asked.