In the run-up to the 2024 elections, the Naveen Patnaik government on Friday expanded the ambit of its flagship free health coverage scheme, Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana, to all rural families in Odisha, except those who are income tax payees and regular government employees. Launched in August 2018, the scheme currently provides coverage for 96 lakh families with ration cards. The recent expansion will add coverage for an additional 14 lakh families without ration cards, resulting in a total of 1.1 crore beneficiaries, representing one-fourth of Odisha’s 4.8 crore population.