Odisha govt seeks special package for tourism sector

Bhubaneswar: Stating that about Rs 10,000 crore of investment was needed to create a world-class tourism infrastructure in Odisha, Chief Minister Mo-han Charan Majhi has urged the Centre to announce a special package for the eastern State. He made the demand at the pre-budget consultation meeting with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at Jaisalmer in Rajasthan on Friday.

“We need about Rs 10,000 crore of investment to create a world-class tour-ism infrastructure across the State. I request the Centre to announce a special package for the development of tourism in Odisha in the 2025-26 budget,” Majhi said at the meeting, according to a statement issued by the Chief Min-ister’s Office (CMO). Majhi also sought the Centre’s support for Odisha’s ur-banisation.

“Odisha’s urbanisation is much lower than the national average. Cities are the engines of growth and migration of large populations from villages to cit-ies is inevitable. This requires huge capital investment for which support from the Union government will be necessary,” he said.

The Chief Minister also urged the Central government to sanction the devel-opment of two new industrial townships — Gopalpur (Salt Pan Land) and Jharsuguda — to accelerate economic growth in southern and western Od-isha.

Noting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stated that Odisha will be the growth engine of the country in the coming years, Majhi said in order to achieve this, the State needs support for developing crucial infrastructure such as industrial parks and corridors, railways, roads, ports and airports.

He also sought a dedicated scheme under the ‘Purvodaya’ initiative to sup-port critical infrastructure development in eastern States, and the inclusion of uncovered blocks in Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar districts under the Aspira-tional Blocks programme. “The expectations of people are very high. People of Odisha want to see transformation in healthcare, education and infrastruc-ture,” Majhi added.