The Odisha government on Saturday announced an ex-gratia of Rs 13 lakh to the next of kin of journalist Rohit Kumar Biswal who lost his life today in a powerful IED explosion reportedly triggered by Maoists.
Biswal, who was associated with a vernacular daily, died in the line of duty while covering a story regarding putting up of posters by Maoists in Kalahandi district this morning. He hailed from Madanpur-Rampur block.
The blast which occurred near Karlakhunta Bridge in Mohangiri area was so severe that the scribe was blown away into the air and died on the spot.
As per reports, Biswal was tipped off about some posters surfacing near Karlakhunta Bridge warning locals to boycott the ensuing Panchayat polls.
He rushed to the spot to check the veracity of the information. When Biswal started to take pictures of the posters he was blown away by a high-intensity blast.
Condolences poured in from all quarters over the tragic end of a journalist in what is termed as the first instance of a journalist being killed in Maoist violence.
Earlier in the day, the Odisha Union of Journalists demanded State honour to the deceased journalist citing that he lost his life for a greater cause while on duty.