Bhubaneswar: On Self-Governance Day 2026, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi launched and laid the foundation stones for several public welfare projects in Bhubaneswar to strengthen urban infrastructure and improve citizen services.
Addressing a special programme, Majhi called for advancing the vision of a ‘Prosperous Odisha’ by developing cities as key drivers of development, employment and innovation.
Under the Chief Minister’s Urban Development Scheme, 593 projects were launched across 62 municipal areas. Of these, 423 projects were inaugurated, while foundation stones were laid for 170 projects.
The state government also announced a special package of Rs 560 crore for infrastructure development in 28 newly formed Notified Area Councils (NACs). Each NAC will receive Rs 20 crore for development works, covering roads, drains, markets, and other infrastructure in the respective areas.
The OSWAN video conferencing facility was also launched across 115 municipal bodies in Odisha. The facility is expected to strengthen administrative efficiency and make decision-making faster and easier.
An important Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Odisha Urban Academy, Capital Region Urban Transport (CRUT), Sri Sri University, the Indian School of Business and the National Institute of Urban Affairs to support modern urban planning.
The government also highlighted the success of the ‘Sahayog’ scheme in connecting eligible urban beneficiaries with various government welfare schemes. The ‘Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana–Bandhu’ programme was also launched during the event.
Municipal bodies and personnel who demonstrated good work efficiency were also recognised for their dedicated service. The awardees included Swachhasathi, Jalasathi, sanitation workers, Sahayog Sahayaks and CRUT employees.
The initiatives launched on Self-Governance Day are focused on improving urban infrastructure, strengthening administration and making citizen services more efficient and transparent across Odisha.
