Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday, 15 June 2026, reaffirmed his government's commitment to maternal and child health, stating that the successful convergence of the state's Mamata scheme with the central Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) is delivering direct financial assistance and nutrition support to pregnant and lactating mothers across Odisha.

Context

Posting in Odia on the occasion of #2YearsofLokankaSarakar (two years of the people's government), Chief Minister Majhi wrote that reducing infant mortality and protecting the health of mothers and children is the 'highest priority' of his government. He added that 'the health protection of every mother and child is the true foundation of building a healthy, prosperous, and developed Odisha.'

The post marks two years since the BJP came to power in Odisha under Majhi, the state's first BJP Chief Minister, who assumed office in June 2024. The messaging underscores welfare scheme convergence as a signature governance theme of his administration.

Policy Backdrop

The Mamata scheme was introduced by Odisha in 2011 as a state-level conditional cash transfer programme to provide financial assistance and supplementary nutrition to pregnant and lactating women. It predates and now operates alongside the central government's Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, launched in 2017 under the Ministry of Women and Child Development, which offers cash incentives to eligible pregnant women for health and nutrition needs during and after pregnancy.

The convergence of these two schemes reflects a nationally encouraged approach since 2017 aimed at reducing fragmentation in benefit delivery. Under the National Health Mission framework, direct benefit transfers and nutrition support have been central tools for lowering infant and maternal mortality rates across Indian states.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries are pregnant women and lactating mothers in Odisha, who receive both financial assistance and nutritional support at the time of childbirth under the combined scheme framework. The Chief Minister's post specifically notes that 'necessary support is being provided to mothers at the time of the birth of their newborn child.'

By aligning the state-funded Mamata scheme with the centrally-sponsored PMMVY, the Odisha government aims to ensure that eligible women receive benefits from both streams without duplication or gaps in coverage — a model that has been cited as a best-practice approach in maternal welfare delivery.

What's Next

The government's stated priority of reducing the infant mortality rate in Odisha will be tested against the next round of National Family Health Survey data and district-level evaluations of scheme uptake across the state. For the Majhi administration, the two-year milestone provides an opportunity to benchmark maternal health outcomes against pre-2024 baselines and demonstrate the impact of federal-state scheme coordination. Sustained improvement in Odisha's maternal and child health indicators will be the measure against which these policy commitments are ultimately judged.