By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, September 17 2024: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated ‘Subhadra’, a flagship initiative by the Odisha Government designed to benefit over one crore women in the state saying that the scheme has been linked to the pilot project of Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) digital currency and women beneficiaries of the state will be able to use it digitally.

The Prime Minister thanked women of the state for being part of it adding that the scheme will provide financial assistance of Rs 50,000 to more than one crore women across the state, an amount which will be given to women in a timely manner. The beneficiary will receive a total sum of Rs 10,000 per year, which will be directly deposited into their bank account that is linked to both Aadhaar and Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). The amount will be disbursed in two equal portions throughout the year.

The Prime Minister also inaugurated and dedicated to the nation Railway Projects valued at over Rs 2800 crores in Bhubaneswar. Additionally, he laid the foundation stone for National Highway Projects worth more than Rs 1000 crores.

The PM then disbursed the initial installment of assistance to approximately 10 lakh beneficiaries under PMAY-G, spanning around 14 states. The Griha Pravesh celebrations were also conducted for 26 lakh beneficiaries of PMAY (Gramin and Urban) from various parts of the country. Furthermore, he introduced the Awaas+ 2024 App, designed to facilitate the survey of additional households for PMAY-G. The Prime Minister also unveiled the Operational Guidelines of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Urban (PMAY-U) 2.0.

Addressing the crowd after launching the scheme on his 74th birthday, PM Modi talked about the importance of women empowerment and Odisha’s development.

“Any country, any state progresses only when half of its population, that is, our women power, has equal participation in its development. Therefore, advancement of women, increasing empowerment of women is going to be the key mantra of Odisha’s development,” he said in his speech.

Earlier in the day, PM Modi engaged with recipients of the PM Awas Yojana-Urban scheme in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. Accompanied by the chief minister of Odisha, Mohan Charan Majhi, the Prime Minister personally visited the residences of multiple beneficiaries of ‘Subhadra’. During these visits, the beneficiaries had the opportunity to express their concerns and ask questions directly to PM Modi.

Many of the beneficiaries greeted the PM with traditional offerings such as sweets, garlands, and performed aarti upon his arrival at their homes.