To give senior citizens a chance to visit various pilgrim spots in the State as well as in the country, the State Government has come up with a new scheme ‘Pilgrimage for Senior Citizens’.
Barring income tax payers and retired Government officers, senior citizens belonging to all religious sections can be enrolled under the scheme. The beneficiaries can visit any religious place across the country free of cost as the State Government will bear all the expenses including transport, food and accommodation charges. Besides, free health services would also be made available for the beneficiaries during the visit. However, the beneficiaries can be included in the pilgrimage for once only.
The scheme was given approval in principle at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the Secretariat here on Thursday.
The Tourism Department will work as the nodal department for the scheme while a special cell will be opened with skilled persons to monitor the scheme. Besides, an MoU will be signed between the IRCTC and the OTDC soon for its smooth management.
It was also decided to form committees at the State and district levels for identification of the beneficiaries, informed Tourism Minister Ashok Panda.