Bhubaneswar: A total of 51,05,290 farmers in the state have so far been provided with financial assistance under the flagship Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA) scheme.

Agriculture Minister Arun Sahoo informed this in the state Assembly today.

The minister said while 57.11 lakh farmers had applied for KALIA, 51, 05, 290 have already been benefited under the scheme. The state Government has planned to cover total 75 lakh farmers under the scheme.

Recently, BJD Rajya Sabha MP Prasanna Acharya had urged the Centre to merge the PM-KISAN Yojana with KALIA. In Parliament, the MP said KALIA is a zero-percent interest loan to farmers, sharecroppers and landless farmers.