Padma awardees in Odisha to get enhanced honorarium of Rs 30K from this month

Odisha government will provide an enhanced financial assistance of Rs 30,000 per month to each of the recipients of Padma Awards from January this year, a notification issued on Thursday by Odia Language, Literature & Culture Department in this regard mentioned.

The awardees will be entitled to a monthly honorarium of Rs 30,000. The plan was outlined in a previous announcement by the Department.

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According to sources, effective from the recent notification, the Government announced that approximately 55 living Padma awardees from the State will now receive a monthly honorarium of Rs 30,000. This decision aims to recognise and support the contributions of these distinguished individuals to society. The enhanced honorarium is expected to cost the State’s exchequer around Rs 2 crore annually.

Previously, in March 2024, the BJD-led government had promised a monthly honorarium of Rs 25,000 ahead of the last General Elections.

However, the latest initiative reflects the current government’s commitment to providing better financial support to such esteemed citizens, some of whom have struggled to make ends meet despite their national recognition.

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Worth mentioning, the move follows the instance of Daitari Naik, a 75-year-old tribal farmer and Padma Shri awardee, whose difficulty in finding work after receiving the award highlighted the need for such financial assistance.

Earlier in June 2019, the Odisha government began offering a monthly honorarium to Padma awardees. This initiative was further strengthened, with successive governments continuing to support these national awardees.