Gopabandhu Health Insurance Increased to ₹5 Lakhs; Kakatpur Press Club Thanks Chief Minister
Kakatpur, 19/7 – While 8,617 working journalists and their families across the state have already been included under the Gopabandhu Health Insurance Scheme, the medical coverage was previously limited to ₹2 lakhs. For a long time, Bibhuti Bhushan Kar, the State President of the Utkal Journalists’ Association—the oldest journalist association in the state—had been persistently appealing to the Chief Minister to increase this limit.
This past Tuesday, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik reviewed the demands and inaugurated a dedicated portal for journalists. He also announced an increase in the health insurance coverage to ₹5 lakhs for each journalist and their family members.
In response, the Kakatpur Press Club, affiliated with the Utkal Journalists’ Association, expressed gratitude to both the Chief Minister and State President Bibhuti Bhushan Kar. At a special meeting held for this purpose, Press Club President Kamal Lochan Dixit, along with all members, were present.
On a related note, Mr. Kar also reiterated additional demands on behalf of the association, including a separate pension scheme for journalists, enactment of a Journalist Protection Act, inclusion of all journalists under the health insurance scheme, and the simplification and integration of the Gopabandhu and Biju Health Insurance plans. He urged the government to immediately consider these pending requests.
