Dikhyaa Mohanty 
The State Food Security Scheme (SFSS), a social security program for those below the poverty line, will be extended by five more years, through December 31, 2028, according to an announcement made by Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday. Up until December 31, 2023, the SFSS beneficiaries were eligible to receive five kilograms of rice at no cost. According to a statement released by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), the state government will use Rs 1,250 crore of its own funds over the course of the next five years, or Rs 250 crore annually.
Under the State Food Security Scheme, 3,14,923 families in the state, comprising 9,97,055 individuals, are covered. Every month, they receive 5 kg of rice at no cost. According to the CMO statement, “these beneficiaries can now avail of the benefit from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2028 with the extension of the scheme by another five years.”
It also emphasized that the Chief Minister has issued stringent directives to guarantee that no state poor person is denied access to food security. After many families were left out of the National Food Security Act (NFSA), the state government started its own SFSS. On October 2, 2018, the Naveen Patnaik government unveiled its own food security program, intended to help the 25 lakh individuals who were not included in the NFSA.
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