BARIPADA: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched the distribution of smart health cards under Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) in the tribal-dominated Mayurbhanj district on Friday. At least 21.40 lakh people in the district will benefit from the scheme. Naveen said the smart health cards will help the poor get access to medical services without any financial difficulty. Beneficiaries can avail services from 200 top hospitals of the country with help of the cards, he said.
Through the smart cards, beneficiaries can avail treatment up to Rs 5 lakh every year. Women can avail benefits up to Rs 10 lakh every year. “Every human life is important for me whether he/she is a farmer, labourer, a small businessman or from tribal communities living in remote areas. The aim behind launching the smart health card is to save lives,” he said.
Naveen further said, “I feel disheartened to hear news of people selling land and ornaments to cover medical expenses. The smart health card will remove the burden of treatment costs on people and the government will bear the expenses.” The State government has provided free healthcare right from community health centres to district headquarters hospitals.
On the day, Naveen laid foundation stones and inaugurated development projects worth a whopping over Rs 2,400 crore in Mayurbhanj. He said Mayurbhanj has contributed a lot for development of Odisha. While foundation stones of 405 projects worth nearly Rs 2,152 crore were laid by the CM, as many as 134 projects worth around Rs 332 crore were inaugurated on the day.
On the occasion, Health Minister Naba Kishore Das highlighted the achievements of the State government in the health sector. Among others, Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water, Law, Housing and Urban Development Minister Pratap Jena was present.