By Purushottam Nayak

Bhubaneswar, Feb 13, 2020: A delegation of Christian and Muslim leaders in Odisha on February 13 met Chief Minister Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to thank him for sanctioning funds to improve pilgrimage centers in the eastern Indian state.

A day earlier, Patnaik sanctioned 160 million rupees to minority religious institutions which will be disbursed by the state’s Special Problem Fund during the financial year of 2019-2020.

The money is to improve amenities at pilgrimage centers, such as building community halls.

The delegation that met Patnaik comprised around 60 representatives of Christian and Muslim communities.

“We are grateful to you for the concern and financial support for the development of pilgrim amenities,” Father Prasanna Pradhan vicar general of the Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar told Patnaik on behalf of the Christian community in the state.

Every year, Patnaik joins Christmas carol singing as a sign of his government’s recognition of Christian contribution to the development of Odisha, Father Pradhan told Matters India.

The Catholic institutions to benefit from the grant are Satyanagar Jesus Christ and St. Vincent Cathedral Church of St. Mother Teresa Road, Bhubaneswar. They will receive 20 million rupees each. Cuttack Odia Baptist Church, Capital Masjid, Unit-4 and Qadam-e-Rasul Masjid, Darghabazar, Cuttack, too will receive the same amount.

The chief minister also granted 10 million rupees each to the Kendrapara Fakirabad Markaji Masjid, Bhadrak Puruna Bazar Jama Masjid, Sambalpur Paltan Masjid, Sambalpur Saint Joseph’s Cathedral (Catholic), Berhampur Bhapur Bazar Jamia Masjid, Giriroad Berhampur Odia Baptist Church, Rourkela Bishop Missionary (Catholic) and Rajgangpur Sunni Jama Masjid.

Missionaries of Charity Sister Rangina Kerketta, who was part of the delegation, thanked Patnaik for naming a road after Saint Teresa of Kolkata, their founder on September 4, 2026.

The government gesture is a sign of “respect and gratitude to Mother Teresa for her invaluable contribution to humanity through her service and charity,” she added.