It is not often that top economists take notice of a scheme launched in Odisha. Therefore, the fact that Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA) won universal approbation from people who make or influence policies is noteworthy. Policy-makers and agricultural experts like Finance Commission chairman N.K. Singh, Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices chairman Vijay Pal Sharma and leading agro-economist Ashok Gulati have hailed the scheme launched by the Naveen Patnaik government in Odisha on December 31, 2018 as a more effective way of addressing farm distress than the populist loan-waiver option.