New Delhi, July 27: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi today sought assistance from the union government for development of ports, industrial parks, railway infrastructure and air connectivity.
Participating in the 9th meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog here, Majhi said the state would adopt the model of port led development, positioning Odisha as the gateway to the Eastern and South Eastern Asia.
“Support is therefore required for establishment of large-scale port-based industrial zones in areas surrounding the existing ports of Dhamra and Gopalpur; while further developing greenfield ports at Astaranga, Palur, Bahuda, and Subarnarekha. In this regard, salt pan land of around 4300 acres owned by the Central Government in Ganjam district may be transferred to the State Government early,” the CM said.
“As we work towards building our infrastructure such as Industrial Parks and Corridors, Electricity Grids, Railway Infrastructure and enhanced air connectivity,dedicated budget allocations and quick clearances from the Union Government for various infrastructure projects would be very helpful,” he informed.
The Chief Minister further said financial support of the Central Government for creation of Disaster Resilient Infrastructure in power, telecom sectors and coastal saline embankments will help the state in minimising the adverse consequences of cyclones and floods.
As a potential green economy, support is also required for Pumped Hydro Storage Plants (PSPs) projects, Floating Solar Projects and intrastate green energy transmission corridor project, he said.
Majhi requested the Centre to expedite opening more numbers of brick & mortar bank branches and ATMs in the unbanked/ under-banked Gram Panchayats.
Informing that Odisha is rich in mineral resources and is a leading producer of various minerals in the country, Majhi said, “We need to move up the value chain and produce special metals and alloys for aerospace and defence. We need the support of the Central Government in this regard.”
He also sought the support of Government of India for attracting Foreign Direct Investment and State-of-the-art technology for design and manufacturing semiconductors.
“With our geographical location resource base and demographic composition, we envisage Odisha’s consistent growth at a rate of 8-10% annually, moving from a middle-ranking state to being one of the first bogies in the train of India’s development,” the Chief Minster said.
