Dikhyaa Mohanty 
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting him to extend the allocation of rice under ‘Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana’ (PMGKAY) at least for the next eight months.
According to the reports, Odisha CM thanked the PM for providing free-of-cost rice under PMGKAY for distribution among NFSA beneficiaries in the State from May 2021 to November 2021. Similar facilities were also provided to the State’s own beneficiaries under its own Food Security Scheme. During this Covid-19 period, not a single person was deprived of food grains.
Odisha CM stated that despite fast-paced vaccination being underway in the State, the pandemic situation is still here as positive cases are still being reported. He also mentioned that at the same time, people are still struggling to lead a normal life with sustainable means of livelihood as pre-pandemic economic activities are yet to be restored.
