The Right to Food Campaign, a network for furthering food rights, expressed concern over “drastic” reduction in budget for promoting millet, grown primarily by tribals and a climate resilient crop, by the Odisha Government.
A government of Odisha order says ₹415 crore has been sanctioned for 2026-27 against last year’s ₹600 crore, a reduction of nearly 31%, despite the scheme having achieved a 93% utilisation rate in 2025-26, demonstrating robust on-ground demand and delivery capacity, the campaign said on Wednesday (May 13, 2026).
“The State government has quietly approved an annual action plan for Shree Anna Abhiyan, reducing funding, withdrawing ground-level support agencies from 13 different blocks, and imposing a financial blackout on tribal-dominated District Mineral Fund (DMF) districts of Keonjhar and Sundargarh,” said Bidyut Mohanty, a lead member of the network.
‘No financial allotment’
“The order explicitly states that no financial allotment or provision will be made to the DMF districts of Keonjhar and eight blocks of Sundargarh. Several vulnerable sections of tribal live in these districts,” he pointed out.
