BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday declared working journalists of the state as frontline Covid warriors.
Approving a proposal to this effect, the Chief Minister said working journalists are doing a great service to the State by providing seamless news coverage and making people aware of issues relating to Covid in this very trying hour. They are a great support in our war against Covid, he added.
The Chief Minister said the decision will benefit 6944 working journalists of the State. All of them have been covered under Gopabandhu Sambadika Swasthya Bima Yojana. They will get a health insurance cover of Rs 2 lakh each, he said.
Besides, an ex gratia of Rs 15 lakh is also being provided to the next of kin of journalists who die of Covid in the line of duty.
So far, 11 journalists have died during the second wave of corona in the state. In the first wave, four
journalists had lost their lives due to corona.