Bhubaneswar, May 5 (PTI): The state government today decided to increase the pension of Odisha's freedom fighters.

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik took to Twitter to announce the decision, where he said: "Happy to announce increase in State Pension for our freedom fighters. I reiterate commitment for their honour, dignity and all-round welfare".

According to sources in the state government, Naveen had earlier approved the proposal and directed the finance department to implement the new pension from April 2017.

According to the decision, the pension of jailed freedom fighters, who also receive central pension, will get Rs 10,000 per month, up from the earlier Rs 6,000.

The freedom fighters who were not jailed and those who took part in the "Goa Mukti Andolan", will also see their pension amounts go up. They will now draw Rs 9,000 instead of the Rs 5,000 they used to get earlier, a release issued by the chief minister's office said.

Naveen has also decided to augment the State Token pension amount from Rs 4,000 to Rs 8,000.

The state government had last increased the pension amount for freedom fighters in 2013. The sudden hike in pension comes barely weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi felicitated family members of 16 freedom fighters from Odisha during his visit to the state for the BJP's national executive meeting.

Paika hero kin

Babula Panda, the grandson of late freedom fighter Laxmi Indira Panda, is likely to remain in hospital for a few more days after the doctors delayed his date of discharge.

Babula, who has been undergoing treatment at SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack, was to be discharged yesterday.

According to sources, Babula may have developed some neurological problems.

Police rescued Babula while he was lying on the roadside in the Mancheswar Industrial area of the city in a critical condition.

He was later admitted to the SCB Medical College and Hospital, where he had been undergoing treatment for a kidney related ailment for over a week. The state government is bearing the expenses of his treatment.

"The patient (Babula) is completely cured of the kidney ailment and his mental status is found to be normal," Siddhartha Das, principal of SCB Medical College and Hospital, said.

"However, we noticed he has difficulties in walking, which could be due to neurological problems for which certain tests have been done," Das said.

Babula had come to Bhubaneswar with his mother, Sujata, the daughter-in-law of the late freedom fighter. Prime Minister Narendra Modi felicitated Sujata at Raj Bhavan on April 16. Both of them had since gone missing. Sujata was rescued shortly after and sent to her hometown in Jeypore.

His disappearance had also sparked a war of words between the BJP and the BJD.