50 Journalists Died Of COVID-19 Across Odisha: CM Majhi
Key Points
The Chief Minister in a written reply said the highest number of deaths were reported from Ganjam district with numbers touching to 10. Similarly, 8 deaths were reported from Bhubaneswar and Khurda, 4 from Sundargarh district
Bhubaneswar, Mar 20: As many as 50 journalists died of COVID-19 across the State, said Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi in the Odisha Assembly.
Responding to a question, the Chief Minister in a written reply said the highest number of deaths were reported from Ganjam district with numbers touching to 10. Similarly, 8 deaths were reported from Bhubaneswar and Khurda district, 4 from Sundargarh district.
Besides, ex-gratia assistance has been provided to at least 49 individuals, added the CM.
COVID-19
It is worth mentioning that the World Health Organisation declared COVID-19 as a pandemic on March 11, 2020. By that time, the virus had spread in many Indian states. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation and announced a Janata curfew on March 21. In the address, the Prime Minister declared journalists and mediapersons as part of essential services and underlined that they would remain active during the lockdown.
During the ongoing pandemic, the journalists in the state worked like frontline workers in providing the required information to the people about Covid-19 which helped the government significantly. However, many journalists lost their life in the pandemic.
According to a report, as many as 101 journalists have succumbed to COVID-19 between 1 April, 2020 and 28 April, 2021. Additionally, over 50 journalists have passed away due to COVID-related complications since January 2021.
