Bhubaneswar, Feb 14: Ahead of the elections to Lok Sabha and Odisha Assembly, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday announced a new monthly pension scheme for the weavers and handicraft artisans.

The ‘Mukhyamantri Baristha Bunakar Sahayata Yojana’ will replace the existing ‘Baristha Bunakar Sahayata Yojana’ for the weaver community.

The government has included handicraft artisans in the new scheme and enhanced the monthly pension provided to the beneficiaries. It will be implemented from the current month.

Under the new scheme, the State government will provide a monthly pension of Rs 2,000 to the weavers, their assistants and handicraft artisans, a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.

The female weavers, their assistants and handicraft artisans in the age group 40 to 80 years and male weavers, their assistants and handicraft artisans in the age group 50 to 80 years, can avail the benefits of the scheme, it said.

Similarly, the weavers, other workers engaged in handloom work and handicraft artisans who are more than 80 years old will get a monthly pension of Rs 2,500 under the scheme, the statement said.

Under the existing pension scheme, the weavers, who attained the age of 60 years and are below 80, receive Rs 500 per month, while the weavers who have attained the age of 80 years get Rs 700 a month.

More than 1.25 lakh weavers and their assistants, and 1.50 lakh handicraft artisans will benefit from the scheme.

The Chief Minister also announced a hike in financial assistance provided to different kinds of needy artists of the state under the Mukhyamantri Kalakar Sahayata Yojana (MKSY).

The monthly financial aid for MKSY beneficiaries up to 80 the age of years has been increased to Rs 2,000 from Rs 1,200. Similarly, artists aged above 80 years will get Rs 2,500 per month, the statement said.

Besides, the state government has revised the norms set to become eligible to avail the benefits of the scheme. Now, artists with a maximum annual income of up to Rs 1 lakh, irrespective of rural and urban areas, can benefit from the scheme, it said.

A total of 80,000 artists will be benefitted, it added.

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