Projects worth Rs 1.10 lakh crore cleared in Odisha

Odisha government today approved 10 major projects worth over Rs 1.10 lakh crore which will create nearly 46,000 jobs in the state.
The high level clearance authority (HLCA) meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik cleared the investment proposals, including JSW Steel Limited, Paradeep Phosphate Limited, OCL India Limited, NLC India, National Aluminum Company Limited, Bhusan Power and Steel Limited, National Mineral Development Corporation and JSW Infrastructure Limited.
Those which got the nod are JSW's mega steel plant at Paradip of 10 mtpa capacity worth investment of Rs 50,000 crore which will provide employment to 30,000 people, NLC Thermal Power's power and renewable energy project of 3200 MW capacity at Jharsuguda at an investment of Rs 23,569 crore with employment opportunity for 3,320 persons, said chief secretary A P Padhi.

The other projects which got the HLCA's approval included JSW Slurry Pipeline of 30 mtpa capacity from Joda to Paradip with investment of Rs 3,700 and employment opportunity for 350 people, Nalco's smelter expansion at Angul with investment of Rs 10,000 crore and employment for 5,700 people. The others are the Nalco refinery expansion at Damonjodi with investment of Rs 4,357 crore with employment oppurtunity to for 1,462 people and Bhusan Power and Steel Limited's 5.50 mtpa steel plant at Jharsuguda at an investment of Rs 4,252 crore with jobs for 900 people.
This apart, the HLCA also gave its nod for NMDC's Pellet plant with 2mtpa capacity at Dhamara with an investment proposal of 2,810 crore and jobs for 850 people, PPL Expansion at investment of Rs 9,459.17 crore and jobs for 2,667 people, Deepak Fertiliser's plant at Paradip at an investment of Rs 1,750 crore and jobs for 440 people and OCL Cement's Rajgangpur plant expansion at an investment of Rs 1,994 crore and jobs for 365 people.

"We are extremely pleased to have received firm commitments for more than 50 per cent of the investment intents received during the Investors' Meets held last year at Mumbai, Bengaluru and Bhubaneswar," Patnaik said.

A host of business reforms carried out by the state government have also paved the way for large investments in the state in diversified sectors.
The state's priority now is on-ground implementation of these projects, Patnaik said adding "Our policy and the business ecosystem are among the best in the country and we shall strive to improve them further."
Following the Make in Odisha Conclave in Bhubaneswar and Odisha Investor's Meets in Mumbai and Bengaluru, the state had received investment intent of Rs 3.6 lakh crore through a total of 124 projects, said Padhi.

The state government has already received firm commitment for 71 projects. This is one of the highest and fastest rates of conversion of investment intent into commitment anywhere in the country, he claimed.
With large number of industries evincing interest to start operations in Odisha, the state government has decided to focus on rapid on-ground implementation of these projects, he added.
An inter-ministerial committee chaired by the state industries minister is closely monitoring the process. A GIS enabled land bank of 100,000 acres has been created to ensure ready availability.
"In the next quarter, groundbreaking and inauguration of more than 10 industrial projects are planned in various districts across the state," Padhi said.