The Odisha government on Tuesday disbursed Rs 804 crore to over 40 lakh small and marginal farmers on the occasion of Akshaya Tritiya, an agrarian festival and a big event in the Odia religious calendar. The festival was celebrated across the state, with farmers performing the ceremonial act of sowing seeds in their fields.

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik greeted the farmers on the occasion of the Akshaya Tritiya and released the money to the accounts of the farmers in the evening.

Each farmer received Rs 2,000 under the Kalia (Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation) scheme. The Naveen Patnaik government had launched the direct benefit transfer scheme Kalia for farmers and landless workers in January 2019 with just two months to go for the general elections. Now under the scheme a farmer is entitled to get an assistance of Rs 4,000 in a year for Kharif and Rabi seasons.

On this auspicious day, work for the construction of the three chariots of Lord Jagannath and his siblings began in Puri. Rath Yatra, this year, is scheduled to be held on July 1.