Key decisions at first Odisha Cabinet besides funds for Jagannath temple

Reopening three closed gates of the Puri Jagannath temple since the COVID-19 pandemic was a key promise in the BJP manifesto.

The newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party government of Odisha led by Mohan Charan Majhi on Wednesday decided to set up a ₹500 crore corpus fund for the Jagannath temple in Puri along with the decision to open all four gates of the complex to visitors.

The CM has ensured close monitoring of the situations in the Jagannath Temple in Puri, to ease the burden on the devotees.(File)

Besides this, the state Cabinet led by BJP's Mohan Charan Majhi, who was sworn in as Odisha's chief minister on Wednesday, also took decisions to restore the shrine, along with other key schemes. Here are the details of the other key decisions:

Samruddha Krushak Niti Yojan

The CM said the state would start framing the policies for Samruddha Krushak Niti Yojana which was promised in the BJP's election manifesto for 2024 Odisha Assembly Elections.

According to the manifesto, payment will be transferred to the farmers within 48 hours through Direct Benefit Transfer(DBT) with electronic weighing for produce procurement in markets.

The scheme promises an 80-85% subsidy on mechanised farming and tools while developing facilities to minimise post-harvest losses. According to the manifesto, “training programs, workshops, and demonstrations to enhance farmers' skills in modern farming techniques” would also be organised.

Majhi has also said that the state government will take steps to increase the minimum support price (MSP) of paddy to ₹3100 per quintal, reported PTI.

"This will be done within a span of the first 100 days of the government,” the chief minister said, according to PTI.

Odisha Subhadra Yojana

CM Majhi criticised the former BJD government for their inaction for women's empowerment and children's welfare, reported PTI.

He said the new government will implement the Subhdra Yojana within 100 days under which the women will get a ₹50,000 cash voucher each, reported PTI.

“The departments are told to prepare guidelines and roadmaps for the implementation of the Subhadra Yojana,” the chief minister said, according to PTI.

The voucher for ₹50,000 can be encashed over two years, according to the BJP manifesto.