Puri, Jan 30: The Odisha government is set to launch the Sri Jagannath Darshan Yojana (SJDY) to facilitate pilgrimage to the Srimandir in Puri for elderly and widow pension beneficiaries. The scheme aims to enable eligible beneficiaries to have darshan of Lord Jagannath, according to the Tourism Department.

In a letter issued to all district collectors, the department informed that revised operational guidelines for the scheme have been notified. As per the guidelines, elderly persons aged between 60 and 75 years and widows up to the age of 75 years who are beneficiaries under Central or State pension schemes will be automatically eligible. However, participation under the scheme will be subject to mandatory consent from the beneficiaries.

The department stated that the Director of Tourism had interacted with District Social Security Officers from all districts on January 13, instructing them to collect consent forms from eligible beneficiaries during the pension distribution programme held on January 15 at the gram panchayat level. Submission of consent forms is essential for beneficiaries to be considered under the scheme during its operational period.

However, the Tourism Department noted that the response in terms of consent collection has been unsatisfactory in most districts so far. In view of this, district collectors have been requested to personally intervene and expedite the process to ensure timely identification and selection of beneficiaries.

Under the Jagannath Darshan Yojana, the state government has set a target of covering 5,000 beneficiaries during the 2025–26 financial year and 30,000 beneficiaries in the 2026–27 financial year.