Odisha CM announces metro project for capital on statehood day

Official sources in the Housing and Urban Development Department said that in the first phase, the metro will run from Biju Patnaik International Airport to Netaji Bridge, the entry point to Cuttack from north Bhubaneswar. It will cover a distance of over 20 km passing through the Bhubaneswar railway station, Vani Vihar, Patia and Nandankanan.

The metro project is likely to be expanded to other nearby towns like Cuttack, Khurda and Jatni in subsequent phases, said official sources. While the current estimated population of Bhubaneswar is around 12 lakh, the combined population of the adjoining places is around 30 lakh.

While approving the project, Naveen asked the state Housing and Urban Development Department to complete the detailed project report on a war footing. The project will be predominantly based on elevated corridors and will be entirely funded by the state government, said the chief minister.

State Housing and Urban Development Secretary G Mathi Vathanan said the tentative cost of the project including the land acquisition cost can only be ascertained after preparation of the DPR. “The metro project will have a significant volume of investment,” said the official.

The Naveen Patnaik government had also tried to introduce metro services in Bhubaneswar-Cuttack and to nearby places as it had engaged a Hyderabad-based Balaji Railroad Systems Limited (BARSYL) in August 2014 to prepare a feasibility report for a mass rapid transit system. BARSYL, in its pre-feasibility report, found that a full-scale metro was not feasible in Bhubaneswar citing low population and huge project cost.

“The consultant (BARSYL) had suggested including some additional areas to make the metro project feasible. We have prepared a fresh plan accordingly and found it feasible,” Mathi Vathanan told The Indian Express.

In March 2021, the then Housing and Urban Development Minister of Odisha, Pratap Jena, had informed the state assembly that the metro train project in Bhubaneswar-Cuttack is not feasible till 2041.

Union Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Kaushal Kishore on March 27 informed the Rajya Sabha in a written reply that no proposal for metro service in Cuttack-Bhubaneswar has been received from the Odisha government.

Stating that respective states are responsible for initiating metro projects, Kaushal has also informed that the Centre considers financial assistance to such projects based on its feasibility.

Official sources said that the metro project in Bhubaneswar, Puri, Khurda and Jatni would involve investment of over Rs 15,000 crore.

The chief minister also approved five industrial projects in various sectors with a total investment potential of Rs 35,760 crore. These projects, in sectors such as information and technology, electronics, green energy equipment, steel, chemicals and textiles, will generate over 38,000 jobs.

The approval came two days prior to Patnaik’s visit to three Japanese cities—Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka—to draw more foreign direct investments to the state.

The chief minister initiated the transfer of Rs 877 crore to the accounts of over 43 lakh farmers under Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA), the income support scheme for farmers in line with the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Yojana of the NDA government.