Dikhyaa Mohanty 
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has sanctioned funds from the Chief Minister Relief Fund (CMRF) with a sum of Rs 60 Lakh which will be utilised to feed stray animals during the ongoing pandemic of Covid-19 lockdown in many parts of Odisha.
The deadliest virus’s second wave have bound the state to hold down the lockdown to lessen the impact of the increasing number of cases because this has impacted the stray animals who were dependent on the leftover foods from the restaurants. But with the lockdown, all restaurants are forced to shut down with only the home delivery allowed.
Like other parts of the country, Odisha has also put measures in place to break the chain of transmission and such strict restrictions are being enforced across five metropolitan corporations, 48 municipalities and 61 notified area councils (NACs).
The official I & PR Department, Odisha Twitter account quoted- “Animals such as stray dogs and cattle are facing a food shortage owing to the lockdown,” said a tweet by the Odisha public information department.
After taking into accounts that local in places where a lockdown is in place will not able to feed stray animals, the Odisha Government decided to make the arrangements and this will now be done through volunteers and voluntary organizations.
The amount sanctioned by CM Naveen Patnaik will allow Bhubaneshwar, Cuttack, Sambalpur, Rourkela and Brahmapur metropolitan corporations to spend Rs 20,000 a day for this purpose. Similarly, the municipalities have been permitted to spend Rs 5,000 a day and NACs Rs 2,000 a day on feeding stray animals.
Image Source – Google
