10 lakh people got smart cards for Odisha health scheme since August: CM Naveen Patnaik

Involve local communities to better deal with second wave of COVID-19: Naveen Patnaik tells officials

The Odisha government has distributed around 10 lakh smart cards under its health scheme, Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY), and over 10,000 beneficiaries have availed its services since it was launched in August this year, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said on Saturday.

The chief minister had announced launching of the smart health card in his Independence Day speech.

“So far 10 lakh people have received the smart health cards and 10,657 of them have utilized the facility and availed health service worth Rs 20 crore in different private hospitals,” Patnaik said.

He was addressing a smart health card distribution programme in Deogarh district.

Patnaik had visited the districts of Malkangiri, Sundergarh, Bolangir, Gajapati and Puri to launch card distribution programmes earlier.

While addressing the people of Deogarh, Patnaik said around 2.70 lakh people in the district will be benefitted from this universal health coverage scheme named after his father and former chief minister Biju Patnaik.

The CM said around 3.5 crore people across the state will benefit from BSKY smart cards.

In addition to distributing health cards, the chief minister also inaugurated and laid foundation stones for several development projects valued at Rs 700 crore in Deogarh.

Patnaik said 87 high schools in Deogarh will be modernised while all the three blocks of the district will get water conveniently under a mega piped water project.

The chief minister also laid the foundation stones for a drinking water project for urban areas and a Rs 115 crore 300-bedded hospital in the district.