INDIA
)
Padma Shri awardee Daitari Naik, who claims he is struggling to make his ends meet, denied returning the prestigious award on Saturday. Naik was conferred with a Padma Shri for single-handedly carving a three-kilometre-long canal from a mountain stream in Odisha. The clarification from Naik, popularly known as 'Canal Man of Odisha', came after reports surfaced of him planning to return the honour as he has not got any aid from the government.