Bhubaneswar | The newly elected BJP government has renamed the Biju Patnaik Sports Award as ‘Odisha Rajya Krida Samman’.

Odisha Sports and Youth Services Department on Friday issued guidelines for the ‘Rajya Krida Samman’ which will be awarded in eight categories annually, subject to availability of suitable candidates. The cash rewards remain unchanged.

According to the guidelines, the lifetime achievement award for promoting sports will carry a cash prize of Rs 3 lakh, while Rs 2 lakh will be awarded for outstanding performance in sports, and Rs 1 lakh for excellence in coaching.

Similarly, a cash award of Rs 1 lakh will be given in each of the following categories - best contribution to sports promotion, excellence in sports journalism, para-sports person of the year, upcoming athlete of the year (junior category), and sports technical official/support staff of the year.

The award recipient must be a resident of Odisha and free of any criminal convictions. It will be conferred only once per lifetime per category and can be awarded posthumously to the next of kin.

The Sports and Youth Services Department secretary will constitute a five-member scrutiny committee comprising senior officials and coaches of the department with sports director or the seniormost officer of the department as head of the panel.

The awards will be presented in a special ceremony on National Sports Day (August 29) every year.

The BJP government plans to rename several popular schemes from the previous BJD administration, including the LAaccMI (Location Accessible Multi-modal Initiative) rural bus service, Mo Bus city service, and Aahaar (Rs 5 per meal scheme).

Objecting to BJP's move, the BJD appealed to the government to refrain from taking such a decision "which will hurt the people of Odisha".

Speaking to reporters, senior BJD MLA Arun Sahoo said Biju Patnaik was not an individual but an institution. "He was a national asset and was honoured by three different countries. By removing his name from a sports award, what does the state government wants to prove?" he asked.

On the other hand, state BJP spokesperson Dillip Mallick said the state government took the step after thoroughly examining it. "Not only Biju Patnaik but many legendary leaders and sports personalities have contributed for the development of Odisha," he said.