___________

In 20 years (i.e., in 2030) the Bhubaneswar-Cuttack-Khurda population would be around 4 million plus. In addition the area would be surrounded by the following cities/towns within 150 kms radius (i.e., about a hour and half away).

• Berhampur-Gopalpur to the south (with a then population of 1.5 million; about 145 kms away)
• Puri to the south (with a then population of 700K; only 30kms away)
• Kalinganagar to the North (with a then population of 500K; only 50 kms away)
• Talcher-Angul to the West (with a then population of 500K; only 110 kms away)
• Dhenkanal to the west (with a then population of 200K and almost in the periphery)
• Paradip to the east (with a then population of 400K and 90 kms away)
• Dhamara-Chandbali to the Northeast (with a then population of 200K and 140 kms away)
• Bhadrak to the North (with a then population of 200K and 140 kms away)

A little farther is

• Balasore-Chandipur to the North (with a then population of 300K and 162 kms away from the Northern end of Bhubaneswar-Cuttack-Khurda area)

In addition there will be several port towns other than the ones mentioned above and a few smaller towns (For example, Nayagarh)  within 200km radius of greater Bhubaneswar.

Besides individual CDPs for these areas the Odisha governement should start making plans for this larger overall area. It would form a different kind of megalopolis than New Delhi, Mumbai or Kolkata with a well planned hub (Bhubaneswar) surrounded by mini-hubs and with rural areas in between. I can not off-hand think of another such area in the world; may be the readers can point me to some. Please suggest what kind of plans need to be made. (Please note that for something to be up and running in 20 years, plans need to be made now.) For example:

• Commuter trains at frequent intervals and the necessary infrastructure for that. Following are some of the segments
  • Bhubaneswar-Puri-Konark-Astaranga (Puri-Konark-Astaranga needs to be built; alternatively if Astaranga port comes up, then there may be a new line from Barang to Astaranga)
  • Bhubaneswar-Berhampur-Gopalpur (Berhampur-Gopalpur needs to be built)
  • Bhubaneswar-Jajpur Rd(Kalinganagar)-Bhadrak-Dhamara (Bhadrak-Dhamara is ready but no trains yet)
  • Bhubaneswar-Jajpur Rd(Kalinganagar)-Bhadrak-Balasore-Baripada
  • Bhubaneswar-Jakhapura(Kalinganagar)-Tomka (on the line to Kendujhargarh)
  • Bhubaneswar-Cuttack-Paradeep (ready)
  • Bhubaneswar-Dhenkanal-Talcher-Angul (ready)
  • Bhubaneswar-Khurda-Nayagarh and beyond (being constructed; part of Khurda-Balangir)
  • Angul-Talcher-Sukinda-Kalinganagar (being constructed)
• Expressways linking these places
• Fast buses linking these places
• Fast airport shuttle
• Some of these places would be connected by waterways including National Waterway 5
• Express ring road around each of these places
• Co-ordinated public transport in each of these places
• ??

Please let your imagination run wild!

Following is from an article by Nageshwar Patnaik in Economic Times. Nageshwar is a big critic of the Tatas. So coming from him, I give a lot of value to the article.

Buoyed by successful resettlement of displaced persons after five years, Tata Steel, which is setting up a 6-mtpa steel plant at Kalinga Nagar in Orissa’s Jajpur district, has undertaken massive infrastructure development work at the project site to get support of the local people, especially the tribals.

Under its Tata Steel Parivar resettlement and rehabilitation (R&R) programme, the leading steel producer of the country has laid 20 km of quality motorable roads connecting all rehabilitation colonies, besides constructing 32 km of drainage system at adjoining tribal-dominated villages such as Trijanga, Sansailo and Gobarghati.

As many as 300 sodium vapour halogen lamp posts have been installed and pipe water provision made to provide better life to the displaced people living in rehabilitation colonies.

Each colony in the project area has a dispensary, community centre and several education centres offering management and technical courses.

“The Tata Steel Parivar rehabilitation scheme at Kalinga Nagar provides substantially better facilities than the government-framed R&R policy. The government policy provides employment for one member from each core household. On the other hand, Tata Steel Parivar policy provides employment opportunities for each major member of the core house. It also provides training facilities for technical skill upgrade,” a press statement, issued by the company here on Thursday, said.

The release also noted that scholarships were being provided for displaced persons pursuing higher education in professional fields such as medicine, engineering and management.

“An amount of Rs 2.21 lakh is also provided as onetime assistance in lieu of employment. Further, under the Tata Steel Parivar policy, each family is given a monthly maintenance allowance of Rs 2,000-2,300 till they get employment in the plant whereas the policy stipulates payment of maintenance allowance for 12 months only,” it added.

The opposition in Kalinganagar has finally seen light and allowed the Tatas to build the infrastructure of Kalinganagar. Related to this, The Telegraph of UK has apologized to the Tatas for their negative coverage.

Things also seem to be going in the positive direction in the POSCO front and I hope the people there visit Tata’s colonies in Kalinganagar and demand and get similar or better facilities and form a positive partnership with POSCO. In addition the Odisha government should push POSCO in developing a POSTECH like University in Paradeep.

However, there is not much progress with respect to Vedanta Aluminum in Kalahandi or Vedanta University in Puri. Here again it would be wise for the people there to visit Tata’s colonies Kalinganagar and demand and get similar or better facilities and form a positive partnership with Vedanta. But the time may be running out for Puri as Vedanta University Project has indicated that it may give up and move south where it will be welcomed with open arms. If that happens it would of course be a mistake of a century for Puri and Odisha.

In regards to the Arcelor-Mittal and Keonjhar the company really has not made much visible effort to woo the people.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Hindu Business Line.

Apeejay Infralogistics Pvt Ltd, a joint venture between Apeejay Surrendra Group and Eredene Capital Plc, UK, hopes to commission the first phase of its two integrated logistics parks at Haldia (West Bengal) and Kalinganagar (Orissa) towards the end of this year.

… Mr Sourav Daspatnaik, Director, Apeejay Surrendra Group, said, “We have just received the Commerce Ministry’s approval for setting up an inland container depot (ICD) at Kalinganagar …”

The Haldia integrated logistics park, estimated at Rs 200 crore in phases, would come up on over 90 acres while the one at Kalinganagar, costing Rs 60 crore, over 30 acres.

The Kalinganagar logistics park, he said, would be different from the one at Haldia because it would cater to the requirements of the steel units coming up in the area. “The big names in steel such as Jindals, the Tatas, and the Visa Group are present at Kalinganagar,” he said.

… In the first phase, the Haldia outfit would be complete with an ICD, warehousing facilities – both covered and open, truck terminal and trade facilitation centre and other facilities. Similar facilities, though on a smaller scale, too were being created at Kalinganagar, he added.

Following is from the PIB http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=62636 which brought our attention to the zonal cultural centers funded by the Ministry of Culture, Government in India. By looking at the web page of the Eastern Zonal Cultural Center in Kolkata, it seems like all of the infrastructure of this center is in West Bengal.

The aims and objectives of the Zonal Cultural Centres (ZCCs) are to preserve, promote and disseminate the arts, specially folk/tribal arts of the country. The ZCCs endeavour to develop and promote the rich diversity and uniqueness of various arts of the Zone and to upgrade and enrich consciousness of the people about their cultural heritage.  

There are only seven ZCCs in the country. Though no ZCC has its headquarters in Karnataka, the state of Karnataka is a member of the South Zone Cultural Centre (SZCC), having its headquarters at Thanjavur and also of South Central Zone Cultural Centre (SCZCC) having its headquarters at Nagpur. 

The details of ZCCs, location-wise and the schemes/programmes organised/executed by each centre, ZCC-wise are annexed.

Annexure

Government has set up seven Zonal Cultural Centres (ZCCs) having headquarters in various part of the country as per the details given below:-

  The ZCCs have been carrying out various activities in accordance with their aims and objectives:-  

                   I.            National Cultural Exchange Programme: With a view to present art forms of one region to another and expose the diverse cultural heritage of each region to the rest of the country, the folk/tribal artistes are sent on exchange manner to participate in the programmes organized by the seven Zonal Cultural Centres.

                II.            Guru Shishya Parampara Scheme:  The Scheme was introduced in 2003-04 with a view to promote development of new talents in the field of music and dance, folk and tribal art forms, under the able guidance of Gurus. 

             III.            Young Talented Artistes Scheme:  The Scheme was introduced during the year 2004-05 to recognize and encourage young talents in the various Folk/Tribal arts forms in different regions in the country.

            IV.            Documentation of Vanishing Art Forms:  Under the Scheme, documentation of various folk and tribal art forms is undertaken, especially of those which are seen to be vanishing.

               V.            Shilpagram Activities:  ZCCs have set up Shilpagrams at Chandigarh, Khajuraho, Udaipur, Guwahati, Allahabad and Shantiniketan to encourage various forms of folk/tribal arts and crafts from rural India. These Shilpagrams are attracting a large number of domestic as well as foreign visitors. Through these Shilpgrams, a number of artistes and artisans are benefited and a large number of people are made aware of our rich cultural heritage.

            VI.            Loktarang – National Folk Dance Festival and OCTAVE – Festival of the North East: All the ZCCs participate in these National level festivals organized every year in New Delhi and/or other places. A large number of folk/tribal artistes from all corners of the country performs during these festivals to showcase the diverse folk/tribal arts of our country.

Following is from the "About Us" page of the Eastern Zonal Cultural Center.

The idea for Zonal Cultural Centers germinated in the mind of our late Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi. At his instance, several centers were set up. They represent the effort on the part of the Government and the people to preserve and protect our rich cultural heritage and to bring it closer to the lives of the people. With each State or Union Territory belonging to at least one Zonal Center, the objective is to foster amongst the people within each zone and among zones, much greater cultural exchanges and understanding. This not only results in a better understanding of our heritage but also brings out the underlying unity of our diverse cultural traditions.

A self-transforming civilization that defies any attempt to freeze it in space and time, living India is a mosaic of varied cultures, layer upon layer, tempered in a history of a common vitality.

Since independence, it has been the concern of the Government of India to encourage the evolution and consolidation of Indian culture by bringing its different streams closer and by making people of various regions know and understand each other’s distinctive traits in a spirit of appreciation and acceptance of the unity in diversity within this country.

The establishment of the Zonal Cultural Centers, in collaboration with the State Governments and Union Territories, is one of the measures taken by the Government of India to achieve this objective.

The Eastern Zonal Cultural Center (EZCC) covering the states of Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Manipur, Orissa, Sikkim, Tripura, West Bengal and The Union Territory of The Andaman and Nicobar Islands is one of the seven such Zonal Cultural Centers set up by the Government of India with a view to culturally integrate the states and Union Territories as a part of the program of national integration.

Since its inception in 1985 the EZCC has been functioning as a cultural nerve center, between and among the numerous ethnic cultural centers/groups of excellence of the eastern parts of the country. The Center strives through its various activities to enrich, promote and strengthen these traditions. The Center is totally dedicated to the promotion, projection and dissemination of our traditional culture.

Over the past several years, the EZCC has been able to infuse among people a conscious appreciation of the rich cultural heritage of its own zone as well as other parts of the country through its manifold programs of folk, tribal and classical dance music and dance, documentation and publication, workshops, as well as its exhibitions on arts and crafts.

The numerous fairs and festivals, seminars and symposia organized through out the year are efforts to combat the constant onslaught of the electronic media.

The Center is under the overall supervision of the Department of Culture, Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Government of India and is headed by the Director. His Excellency the Governor of West Bengal is the chairman of the EZCC.

The more we try to unravel the mysteries of our own many splendoured culture, the more we perceive the underlying strength of unity and harmony that rises above all differences and distinctions and enmeshes us in its inherent bonds. This is what we are committed to project and promote.

The following is from the Infrastructure page of the Eastern Zonal Cultural Center.

A. The Bharatiyam Cultural Multiplex is situated at IB-201, Sector III, Salt Lake City, Kolkata 700106.

The facilities available at the Bharatiyam Cultural Multiplex include

• Purbashree (Main Auditorium)
  Air conditioned auditorium measuring 7850 square feet, having a capacity for over 900 persons.

• Rangmanch (Open Air Theatre)
  Open Air Theatre measuring 4000 square feet has been built with a seating capacity of about 400 people.
• Naat Ghar (Studio Theatre)
  Air conditioned studio theatre measuring 1200 square feet has a seating capacity for 100 persons.
• Sobha Ghar (Art Gallery)
  The air-conditioned art gallery measures 3280 square feet. The exhibition wall is provided with track lighting.

Karmashala-I and II (Workshop Rooms) The air-conditioned workshop rooms measuring 610 square feet each are used by the EZCC to hold a variety of workshops on instrumental/ vocal music, performing arts, doll making, painting etc.
Kala Mandap The open air space measuring 4270square feet is ideal for holding crafts fairs and other festivals. Beautiful sculptures made by eminent artists give the place a perfect ambience.

• Food Court
  The open air Food Court measuring 2000 square feet with its ethnic background is an ideal place for hosting food festivals etc.

B. The Aikatan Cultural Center is situated at IA-190, Sector III, Salt Lake City, Kolkata 700097.

The facilities available at the Aikatan Cultural Complex include

Air conditioned auditorium which has a seating capacity for 110 persons. It is ideal for seminars, workshops, lecture demonstrations and cultural programs. Dormitory facilities for men/women in two halls with 32 beds in each Dining hall

C. SRIJANI, the Shilpagram Complex of the EZCC is situated in Santiniketan, Bolpur in Birbhum District of West Bengal.

This unique cultural center provides a conducive and infrastructure to nurture our traditional arts and crafts. The complex comprises of huts, representative of EZCC’s member states. The huts incorporate traditional architectural features and design.

The question is if the Eastern Zonal Cultural Center is supposed to cater several states in the Eastern part of India, including Odisha, why is all of its infrastructure in West Bengal.

This means the system of zonal cultural center is not working. The GOI must exapnd it to all major states and establish a similar center in Odisha. Odisha CM must lobby for it and make sure it is included in the next five year plan starting from 2012.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard by Jayjit Dash.

The Orissa government is likely to form a special purpose vehicle (SPV) with Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS), one of India’s leading infrastructure development and finance companies, for the proposed mega food park project at Khurda.

The mega food park which is coming up on 250 acres of land at Khurda has the potential to attract investments to the tune of Rs 2000 crore.

“… The Centre is planning to float tenders for this project by August and the project is expected to attract many noted developers in the food processing sector”, Saurabh Garg, industries secretary, Orissa government told Business Standard.

Besides offering its expertise to help boost investments in the food processing sector, IL&FS will also offer its inputs to the state government in finalizing the food processing policy which would be notified soon, he added.

Garg admitted that the lack of adequate storage facilities was impeding the growth of the food processing sector in the state. To overcome this, he stated that the state government had a preliminary round of talks with Fresh and Healthy Enterprises Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Container Corporation of India Limited for setting up cold chains in different locations of the state.

The details in this connection, however, are yet to be finalized.

It may be noted that IL&FS had carried a study on raw material availability for the food processing sector in different locations of the state. It had identified paddy, mango, tomato, coconut, cashew, ginger and brinjal as the products with a huge potential for processing but had pointed out that the major bottleneck to the growth of the sector was the inadequate cold storage facilities in the state.

To give the much desired fillip to the food processing sector, IL&FS had suggested the Orissa government to offer a package of incentives to attract big players in the sector like ITC, Britannia Industries and Parle Agro Ltd.

Hemant Sharma, director, industries department, Orissa government said, “IL&FS has suggested us to offer a host of incentives like capital investment subsidy of at least 30 per cent, make provisions for seasonal electricity tariff for the food processing units, offer these units exemption from Value Added Tax (VAT) and provide interest subvention of five per cent. While Bihar offers a capital investment subsidy of up to 40 per cent for maize processing, there is no such scheme in Orissa.”

All the big players- ITC, Britannia Industries, Parle Agro Ltd and Indo Nissin Foods Ltd have evinced interest in investing in the food processing sector in the state.

Among these, Parle Agro’s unit has been cleared by the State Level Single Window Clearance Authority while the site selection is underway for the proposed projects of Britannia Industries and Indo Nissin Foods, the noodles maker.

ITC has so far remained non-responsive after initially evincing interest to invest in the food processing sector.

LMJ International, a Kolkata-based export firm had also proposed to set up a maize processing complex in south Orissa’s Nabarangapur district at an investment of around Rs 150 crore.

Following is an excerpt from a report in sify.com.

The State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) today cleared nine new investment proposals worth Rs 4920.26 crore. Out of these, five are in the cement sector, two aluminium conductor units, a maize processing unit and a petroleum coke plant.

Out of the five new cement projects, two are of Madras Cement which will set up its units at Sundergarh and Malkangiri.

The company’s Sundargarh plant will have two million tonne per annum (mtpa) cement capacity along with 40 MW of captive power generation facility. The project is estimated to cost Rs 750 crore. Madras Cement, known for its Ramko brand of cement, will also have a cement fibre sheet plant at the same location at an investment of Rs 35 crore.

The company’s second cement unit in the state, also with a capacity of two mtpa, will come up at Malkanagiri. It will have a 36 MW Captive Power Plant and the combined cost of the project is pegged at Rs 700 crore.

Apart from Madras Cement, Ajmer-based Shree Cement, known for its Bangur brand of cement, has proposed to set up a three mtpa cement unit and a 36 MW CPP, also at Malkangiri, at an investment of Rs 683 crore.

ACC Cement intends to set up a three mtpa cement unit and a 50 MW CPP at Malkangiri, involving an investment of Rs 1850 crore.

Similarly, Emami Group which has a newsprint making plant at Balgopalpur in Balasore district will invest Rs 179 crore at Somnathpur in the same district for setting up a 0.6 mtpa cement grinding unit.

… Among the other investment proposals cleared by SLSWCA is the Seashore Group’s plan to set up a maize processing unit at Papdahandi block in Nabarangpur district at a cost of Rs 160 crore. The facility will come up on 123 acres of land and will require two lakh litres of water per day. The project will create 96 direct jobs besides creating indirect employment opportunity for around 6000 people.

Sterlite Technologies Ltd, a Vedanta Group firm, will invest Rs 51.26 crore on establishing an aluminium conductor plant as well as an aluminium alloy rod unit at Brundamal near Jharsuguda. This plant will be a downstream unit of the company’s existing aluminium smelter at Jharsuguda.

Kalinga Calciners has proposed to set up petroleum coke plant near Paradeep at a cost of Rs 80 crore. The plant will have an overall capacity of 2,20,000 tonnes per annum which will be achieved in two phases.

The SLSWCA also cleared the proposal of Hindustan Vidyut Products Ltd which has evinced interest in setting up an aluminium conductor plant at Jharsuguda, entailing an investment of Rs 389 crore. This project which will come up on 75 acres of land will create direct employment for 153 people and creating indirect jobs for around 400 others.

Its good to see that some of the above units are proposed for remote backward districts such as Malkangiri and Nabarangpur.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

The Hyderabad-based Global Hospitals Group plans to upgrade itself to a major super-speciality healthcare provider in the country. For this, it will add over 2,000 beds in five projects in various cities within three years with an investment of over Rs 1,200 crore.

… The group, which has been in existence for 12 years and focusses on super-speciality and organ transplantation,…

… The company will also set up a 450-bed hospital in Kolkata with an investment of Rs 200 crore and a 300-bed facility in Bhubaneswar by pumping in Rs 100 crore. The fifth project will come up in Chennai, for which the group will invest Rs 75-80 crore.

Following is from a report in Business Standard.

Jindal Infrastructure Limited, a JSW Group Company, which proposed to up a Rs 2238-crore captive deep sea port at Bichitrapur in Orissa’s Balsore district, has targeted to achieve a cargo throughput of 10 million tonne per annum (mtpa) in the first phase.

The company will invest Rs 550 crore in the first phase which is scheduled for commissioning by 2013. The port’s cargo handling is projected to reach 20 mtpa in the second phase to be operational by 2013 and 45 mtpa by 2020.

JSW Infrastructure will invest Rs 750 crore and Rs 938 crore in the second phase and third phase respectively.

The port will handle cargo like coking coal, thermal coal, met coke, dolomite limestone, iron ore, finished steel products, bauxite, gypsum and clinker.

Out of the total investment of Rs 2238 crore, JSW will invest Rs 230 crore on land development, Rs 243 crore on berths, Rs 120 crore on breakwaters and embankments, Rs 900 crore on dredging and Rs 366 crore on handling equipment.

Besides, Rs 150 crore will be invested on railway and road network while Rs 69 crore is earmarked for buildings and workshops.

The port project will generate direct employment for 500 besides creating indirect employment avenues for 5000 others.

… The port will have a maximum draft of 18 metres.

As per the land use plan of the project, the port back-up area including approaches will be 3500 acres, out of which 2500 acres will be developed through reclamation using dredged material and the balance 1000 acres will be provided by the state government.

… JSW has assured to develop the port at Bichitrapur as per the amended CRZ (Coastal Regulatory Zone) norms.

The company will prepare the Environment Management Plan for the project.

The port will be located at a distance of 35 km from the rail link, 30 km from the nearest National Highway (NH-60) and seven km from the nearest state highway (SH-4).

JSW’s port will have a multiplier effect as it will encourage port-based industries like apparel parks, forging industry, leather industry as well as pharmaceuticals and biotechnology industries.

Following is from Samaja.

Following is from Samaja.

The following is from http://www.iwai.gov.in/mapnw5.htm.

Salient features of National Waterway No. 5 – Brahmani river & Mahanadi delta system along with East Coast Canal (NW-5) Declared as National Waterway 5 (NW 5) on 25.11.2008 Detailed Project Report (DPR) prepared by M/s. WAPCOS Length – 588 km. River portion (371 km) Canal portion (217 km) Estimated Cost (at 2009 prices) (i) Cost for development of River portion Rs. 2230 cr (Barrages- 1843 cr) (ii) Cost of development of canal portion Rs. 1979 cr (Dredging- 1273 cr) (iii) Total Cost Rs. 4209 crore Period of Completion – 7 years Land Acquisition: in West Bengal – 846 Ha in Orissa – 1172 Ha required Estimated cost of land acquisition – Rs. 176 Crore Details of dredging River portion – 10.07 million cum Canal portion – 44.77 million cum Barrages To maintain LAD of 2 m in the Brahmani river all through the year, 5 barrages with height equal to the highest flood level are proposed to be constructed at every 26 km between Talcher and Jokadia. Each barrage will have a navigational lock to allow passage of two 500 tonne vessels at a time. Cargo potential Coal from Talcher to Dhamra and Paradip ports is the most important potential cargo for this waterway. Immediately after the development of the waterway, it is estimated in the DPR that about 11 million tonne of cargo can be transported per year which can go up to 23 million tonne in next 15 years or so. EIRR River portion 31.77% Canal portion 12.75% Rive and canal together 23.75% For Executive Summary of DPR click here

Following is from a report in Pioneer:

The six-laning work of the Bhubaneswar–Chandikhol portion of the National Highway-5 will begin from September, after this rainy season. A sum of Rs 1,047 crore will be invested for the project under the NHDP Phase-5. A consortium has been formed with three private companies, and the contract awarded, an official of NHAI said.

The consortium of Srei, Gulfar and Simplex Infrastructure would undertake the project, which is scheduled to be completed in two and a half years’ period. This would be done on the BOT basis. After completion of the work, the consortium would maintain the road and collect toll for a period of 26 years.

After the four-laning work of the NH-5, this is the first stretch within Odisha to have six lanes. The distance from Bhubaneswar to Chandikhol is 67 km, which would have seven flyovers and four major bridges over the river Kathjodi, Kuakhai, Mahanadi and Birupa. Out of the seven flyovers, four would be built over the CRP, Acharya Vihar, Vani Vihar and Rasulgarh squares along the highway in Bhubaneswar.

As per the PIB at http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=55628 dated December, 10

So far, seventeen airports in the country have been accorded “International Status”. These airports are Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Calicut, Chennai, Guwahati, Jaipur, Kolkata, Thiruvananthapuram, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochi, Delhi, Mumbai, Nagpur, Goa, Port Blair and Srinagar. … Some airports are notified as Customs airports which can also cater to international flights. The customs airports are Varanasai, Tiruchirapalli (Trichy), Patna, Mangalore, Lucknow, Gaya, Coimbatore and Pune (civil enclave).

The following map shows the above airports. As one may notice there is a huge part around Odisha, Northern Andhra Pradesh and Chhatisgarh that is not served by an international or customs airport. To serve those regions it is important that international connectivity is brought to Bhubaneswar airport.

Following is from a report in tathya.in.

Mr.Singh Deo, Minister Planning & Coordination …

Harishankar is one of the top most tourist spots in Western Odisha. 

Lack of amenities for tourists had hampered the growth of tourism sector. 

Now with a Panthanivas with all the modern facilities, this will serve a major purpose in providing amenities to the large number of tourists to this part of the state, said Mr.Singh Deo. 

Minister inaugurated the panthanivas and said similar amenities are being arranged in other tourist places of the Western Odisha.

Related to this, OTDC has a nice package that has a trekking inthe Gandhamardan hills component. The two entry points to these hills are Harishankar and Nrushinghanath. the package detail from http://www.panthanivas.com/newpackage2.htm is as follows:

 See our earlier articles on Harishankar and Nrusinghanath at:

• http://www.orissalinks.com/orissagrowth/archives/2785.
• http://www.orissalinks.com/orissagrowth/archives/2781.

Following is from a report in Odishatoday.com.

A handloom and handicraft museum would be set up soon at Jayadev Batika near Khandagiri on the outskirts of the capital city, Textile and Handloom Minister Anjali Behera told newspersons here.

Ms Behera said four acres of land had already been identified for the Museum and it would be set up at a cost of Rs six crore.

While around 10,000 square feet of the museum would be used for handloom as many as 7,000 square feet would be used for handicrafts.

The Minister said tender process for the museum had already started.

Following is from Samaja.

Following is from a report by Bishnu Das in Business Standard.

Hyderabad based NSL group … has proposed setting up a food processing plant, a sugar refinery and a textile spinning mill in the state with a combined investment of Rs 2340 crore.

Sources said, the company keen to set up a seed processing plant at Bonda in Baragarh district at an investment of Rs 40 crore.

The project is expected to generate direct and indirect employment opportunities for 2100 persons. About 8,000 farmers would also get the benefit of contract farming. Similarly, the company proposes to set up a sugar refinery with a capacity to crush 5,000 tonnes of sugarcane per day at Paradeep.

The project is estimated to cost Rs 800 crore and it would directly and indirectly employ about 1000 persons. NSL also intends to invest Rs 1,500 crore for setting up a spinning mill in the state.

The project is expected to provide direct and indirect job opportunities and benefit about 1 lakh farmers through contract farming.

The company is in the process of submitting the detailed proposals to the state owned Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Orissa Ltd. (Ipicol) in this regard.

Following is from a report in Financial Express.

Work on acquisition of land and obtaining of clearances for the twin-site Rs 9,000 crore RSB Metaltech Ltd’s project involving bauxite mining and setting up an alumina refinery unit at Rayagada and a 0.7 million tonne per annum (mtpa) smelter unit plus a 500 MW power plant to be set up at Kamakshyanagar in Dhenkanal in Orissa, are progressing satisfactorily.

… The company intends to transport processed alumina from its Raigada plant to Kamakshyanagar in railway rakes.

“Work on land acquisition as well as environmental clearance has already started; the Orissa government has given final clearance to 1,520 acres of land for the Raygada project and 1,546 acres for the Kamakshyanagar project”, said RSB Metaltech managing director S K Behera, speaking to FE.

The company had applied to the state government for around 3,000 acres of land for each of the sites.

Initial environmental clearance for the project, as well as clearances from the railways, and for water for the plants from the state government has also been obtained.

…  as per the MoU with the Orissa government, RSB Metaltech has entered into a joint venture with Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC) for bauxite mining and an alumina refinery at Rayagada.

Simultaneously, the company is to set up a 0.7 mtpa capacity smelter plant at Kamakshyanagar which would feed aluminium metal to the 50-odd downstream units that are to come up and which would be manufacturing construction products, auto components like cylinder head, cylinder block, gear box, clutch housing, etc.

Both the Kamakshyanagar and Rayagada units which are expected to become fully operational in five years’ time would together be able to give employment to around 12,000 people, said Behera.

“We will like to invite certain companies to use the hot metal (aluminium) available with us, who will immediately process it (the hot metal) to make auto components and other products and thus save on cost”, said the RSB Transmissions managing director, adding that while some of the downstream units would be fully owned by the RSB group, several others including a number of export-oriented units would be on joint venture basis.

The government must investigate this.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Financial Express.

AES India, a subsidiary of the US utility giant AES Corporation, is proposing to expand the capacity of the 420 MW (2 x210 MW) ITPS by adding two super-critical units of 660 MW each. The Rs 10,000 crore expansion programme includes the development of the captive coal mines and the MGR (merry-go-round) rail link to transport coal to the plant site. In fact, ITPS is owned by Orissa Power Generation Corporation (OPGC), a company where the AES Corporation has 49% stake while the Orissa government has 51% holding. However, the management of the company is with AES Corporation.

… The AES chief said that the 1320 MW (2 x 660 MW) thermal power project would be completed within four years of the award of the contracts. The two units would come up on the site III and IV already developed for the purpose.

… Presently, OPGC is committed to sale the entire 420 MW of power to the state government. As the initial plan was to put up two more units of 210 MW each at site III and IV, the state government insisted that the power generated from the expanded units be allotted to Orissa. However, the AES was of the view that the power be sold in the open market to maximize the revenue realizations. Finally, it has been decided that 50% of the power generated from the expanded 1320 MW project would be allotted to Orissa grid and the rest would be sold in the open.

The article at http://www.expresshealthcare.in/201005/market01.shtml by Rita Dutta gives a detailed exposition of the recent boom of healthcare facilities in Bhubaneswar. A few years back a WIPRO VP mentioned the lack of such facilities as one of the main reasons (others being availability of high class housing, high class schools, and good shopping opportunities) why many top IT managers were unwilling to move to Bhubaneswar to manage bigger teams. Fortunately there has been movement in all these fronts.

Following are some excerpts from the abovementioned article.

However, recent industrial, infrastructural and educational development in Bhubaneswar, has made the city, considered to be one of the cleanest and planned cities of modern India and one of the fastest developing cities of India, the epicentre of healthcare revolution in Orissa. Says Bipul K Jha, Industry Analyst, Healthcare Practice, South Asia & Middle East, Frost and Sullivan, "This change has been powered by the huge investment flow, rising employment opportunities, and increasing foothold of service-based sectors, which has in turn led to rise in purchasing power and increased standards of living."

Bhubaneswar, now being dubbed ‘the rising star of the East’, has attracted a whopping Rs 6,00,000 crore investment from across all industries like IT, technology, steel, aluminium, tourism, health and education sectors. Huge capex by the large industrial houses in the core infrastructure sector has witnessed a rise of 11.5 per cent in the last two years. The per capita income of the state has shot up from Rs 10,567 in 1999-2000 to Rs 16,149 in 2007-08. The population has grown by nearly 8 per cent in the last decade; the metro area of Bhubaneswar has mixed culture population base of 19 lakh, housing almost 11 percent of the urban population of the state. "Moreover, one corporate hospital (Kalinga Hospital) has set an example for other players by being an early market entrant and doing good business," says Jha.

It is a highly under-served market with its ratio of beds per 1,000 population being two-thirds of the national average of 0.86. What is attracting corporates like Apollo, AMRI, Narayana Hrudayalaya, Vedanta Aluminium, Asian Heart and Global to set up base here is the untapped potential. Says Dr K Ravindranath, Chairman, Global Hospital, who is setting up a 200-bed hospital in Bhubaneswar, "Our hospitals in Chennai and Hyderabad have always been getting a steady stream of patients from Eastern India, which constitutes one third of India’s population. Eastern India is also frequented by patients from Nepal and Bangladesh. So it makes complete business sense to foray into Bhubaneswar, before anyone else does."

Explains Dr Ramakant Panda, Vice Chairman, Asian Heart Institute, Mumbai as why he has planned a hospital in Bhubaneswar. "There is a dire need for hospitals with good infrastructure in Bhubaneswar. Moreover, being from Orissa, I want to do my bit for the State."

Adds Harihar Rath, Deputy General Manager, Marketing, Apollo Hospital, Bhubaneswar, "Lacunae of healthcare services and the rising disposable income of people of the regions are the main reasons for healthcare investment in the area. With more IT and BPO firms setting up offices in Bhubaneswar, the paying populace has also increased."

Government Impetus

The present Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik, has played a crucial role in giving the much-required thrust, according to Dr Bidhan Das, Managing Director, Octavo Solutions, a consultancy firm that has done some projects in Orissa. "The Government’s efforts to improve infrastructure in the city have induced private realtors like DLF to invest. The entry of retail chains like Reliance, Big Bazaar, and Pantaloons has helped the Government to support the economy of Bhubaneswar. The uplift of the economy has attracted corporates to invest in healthcare," says he.

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The Impact

From a city that lagged behind in diagnostic procedures, today hospitals in the city have radiology procedures like 64 slice CT, 1.5 Tesla MRI, 3-D ultrasound and digital mammogram. The cath labs are flat panel, while OTs have laminar air flow and HEPA filters. All 50 speciality and super speciality treatments are available now in the leading hospitals. The city’s first corporate hospital, Kalinga Hospital, now offers kidney transplantation, LV Prasad Eye Institute has taken the lead in dealing with complicated ophthalmic cases, while high risk cardiac cases are dealt with by Kalinga Hospital, Aditya Care and Apollo Hospital. With Hemalata Cancer Hospital now providing all three branches of oncology treatment, especially linear accelerator with IMRT and CT stimulation, the high cancer burden of the state has been taken care of.

In the current scenario, while existing hospitals are introducing cutting edge technology, scaling up and even planning larger hospitals, corporates are rushing in to grab a pie of the market. Diagnostic giants like Dr Lalpathlabs, Ranbaxy and Piramal Diagnostics have set-ups there. Even stem cell banking, a relatively new concept, is picking up here. Cryobanks International India, which deals in umbilical cord blood stem cell banking, has opened a collection centre in Bhubaneswar. As many as three private medical colleges (Hi-Tech Medical College, Sum Medical College and Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences) have come up in Bhubaneswar in the last few years. Even a slew of nursing colleges have also been set up to fulfil the skyrocketing demand. The healthcare boom has paved the path for many NRI doctors (both Oriya and non Oriya) to show willingness to work in Bhubaneswar, a trend that is a recent phenomenon.

Here’s a look at the players who powered the change.

Kalinga Hospital: It would be no exaggeration to say that it was Kalinga Hospital that took the first initiative to change the healthcare firmament of the state. The hospital was conceived and promoted by 62 non resident Oriyas, who are mostly doctors by profession, based in the US and the UK. With an aim to provide the latest medical technology to the people of the state and to stop them from going outside the state seeking treatment, the doctors pumped in Rs 30 crore to start Kalinga Hospital located at Chandrasekharpur area of Bhubaneswar, with 160 beds in 1998.

Today, the 250-bed Kalinga Hospital spread over 10 acres is the first hospital in Orissa to do regular cardiac cath, open heart surgery, dialysis and kidney transplant, advanced neuro surgery, gastro-intestinal surgery and cosmetic surgery. It is the only recognised centre in the State for kidney transplantation. …

LV Prasad Eye Institute: This hospital, set up in July 2006, has taken the city’s ophthalmology care several notches higher. This not-for-profit institute, that conducts 35 per cent of all care at no cost to the patients, has a unique ocular prosthesis laboratory that offers cosmetic eyes tailored to the patients’ needs. The institute started the state’s first community eye bank for corneal retrieval and transplantation. Named ‘Drusti Daan’, the eye bank is housed on campus, but serves all of Orissa. Several surgeries that it has pioneered in Orissa are Infiniti cataract surgical system, constellation vitrectomy system and radio frequency devices offering bloodless eye plastic and orbit surgery. …

Aditya Care Hospital: Hyderabad’s Care Hospital started this 100-bed cardiology hospital on a leased property near Municipal Kalyan Mandap at Chandrasekharpur in September 2007. The list of procedures that the hospital has pioneered in Orissa include EP study and RFA, Paediatric Cardiology Intervention and CRT. Besides, the hospital has taken a lead in doing PTCA with stenting and ICD in cardiology, CABG multiple grafts and paediatric cardiac surgery like VSD closure, ASD closure and PDA in cardiac surgery, haemodialysis, laparoscopic surgery and joint replacement surgery.

"The hospital will be scaled up to 300 beds, for which 3.92 acres of land has been obtained from the Government of Orissa," adds Dr Mishra.

Hemalata Hospitals and Research Centre: This super speciality hospital focusing on oncology is the state’s only comprehensive cancer hospital in the private sector that offers medical oncology, radiation therapy and cancer surgery under one roof. This 100- bed unit, with a built up area of 80,000 square metres, was set up in 2005. The project was conceived by Dr Arabinda Rath and funded by TDB. This is the only hospital in Orissa with a linear accelerator….

Apollo Hospital: In March this year, Apollo Hospital inaugurated the city’s largest tertiary care hospital in Bhubaneswar with 150 beds, expandable to 350 beds. This Rs-150-crore project is spread over two lakh square feet in a sprawling campus of 7.5 acres, providing over 50 specialities. The hospital has installed the State’s first 64 slice CT and paediatric cardiology unit. It also has a telemedicine facility. …

In the Pipeline

There are many more hospitals in the pipeline.

AMRI Hospitals: A joint venture between Emami and Shrachi Group of Industries, Kolkata-based AMRI Hospitals is coming out with a multi-speciality hospital at Khandagiri Square, a prime location in Bhubaneswar. This is AMRI’s first project outside Kolkata.

Says DN Agarwal, Executive Director, AMRI Hospitals, "This Rs-120-crore project with 300 beds spread over five acres would have an FSI of 3,50,000 square feet. This is likely to be commissioned by August 2010."

Sparsh Hospital: Sparsh Hospital, which runs an 80-bed hospital and claims to have pioneered procedures like Chemoport insertion and Hicman’s catheterisation in Bhubaneswar, has planned a 250-bed set up in the Chandrasekharpur area of the city. The new project, built at a cost of Rs 40 crore, would house all super speciality facilities under one roof. Says Dr Ghanashyam Biswas, Director, Sparsh Hospital, "The construction for the new project will start by 2011 and will be completed by 2013."

 

Care Hospital: After achieving success with the JV project Aditya Care, the Care group has planned a multi super speciality hospital of 200 beds in Chandrasekharpur. The 4.5 acres were acquired around 18 months back, but due to trespassing, construction has not begun yet.

Ayush Hospital: This group, which runs a 120-bed hospital at Acharya Vihar Square in Bhubaneswar, has drawn up a plan for its second multi-speciality hospital in the city at an investment of about Rs 200 crore. The proposed hospital would be equipped with over 500 beds and it is expected to be operational by 2012. Says Dr Ashok Acharya, MD, Ayush Hospital, "The land is being identified for the project and construction work for this hospital is expected to start from next year."

Global Hospital: Hyderabad-based Global Hospital is building a 200-bed hospital. This project, built at an estimated cost of Rs 100 crore on a leased building, would be focusing on tertiary and quaternary care (specially renal transplants). Says Dr K Ravindranath, Chairman, Global Hospital, "This is a JV project with a local group, whose founders are my patients. This is their first venture in healthcare. The hospital would be known as Global Hospital." He added that the cost of equipping the hospital would be borne by Global Hospital. Construction is expected to start by November this year and commissioning is likely by the end of next year.

Narayana Hrudayalaya: Bengaluru-based Narayana Hrudayalaya is coming up with a 750-bed health city at Dum Duma at Khandagiri Square. The hospital, spread over seven acres, would provide multi super speciality treatment. Says Dr Ashutosh Raghuvanshi, Vice Chairman, Narayana Hrudayalaya, "The first phase of the hospital with 250 beds is being built at a cost of Rs 80 crore. We would start construction of the hospital after the monsoons, this year. We would commission the first phase by 2012."

Desun Hospital: Kolkata-based Desun Hospital and Heart Institutive has planned a hospital on Bhubaneswar Cuttack Road. The 250-bed green field project is slated to be commissioned by 2013. Says Sajal Dutta, CMD, Desan Hospital, "This multi super speciality hospital is being set up at an estimated cost of Rs 80 crore."

Vedanta Aluminium: Fulfilling the need for a full-fledged trauma centre, Vedanta Aluminium is setting up a 100-bed state-of-the-art trauma care centre near Gangapada on National Highway 5. This Rs-75-crore project is coming up on 10 acres of land.

Asian Heart Institute: Mumbai’s Asian Heart Institute (AHI), established by Dr Ramakant Panda and a few other cardiologists, has also announced plans of opening a state-of-the-art multi speciality hospital in Chandrasekharpur. Spread over 1,50,000 square feet, the 400-bed hospital is expected to come up with an investment of Rs 150 crore. Says Dr Ramakant Panda, Vice Chairman, AHI, "We have a start-up plan for 200 beds at an estimated cost of Rs 70 crore. We would eventually expand it to 400 beds, spending Rs 150 crore." About the significance of the project, he says, "AHI has set a benchmark in providing quality care in the country. Our project in Orissa would be built on the same principles as AHI, Mumbai and would offer the patients the same treatment and care at world class standards."

It will have 12 ultra modern operation theatres, 100 intensive care units, fully equipped modernised pathology services, radiology, imaging services, blood bank, 24-hour pharmacy services and cardiac ambulance services with mobile cathlab. Though the foundation stone of the hospital has been laid, progress was stalled by some dispute regarding the land. "As the land being sought for the project is a Government land, hence acquiring it is a little issue," says Dr Panda.

UIMS: A group of non-resident Oriyas have joined hands to set up Orissa’s first nuclear medicine centre- Utkal Institute of Medical Sciences (UIMS).

AIIMS: The upcoming All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Bhubaneswar will have a 978-bed hospital. Besides, 15 super speciality and 18 speciality wards have also been proposed. The State Government is supposed to provide 100 acres of land free at Sijua on the outskirts for the prestigious institute. According to a review meeting, while 93 acres have already been transferred for construction, the rest will soon be handed over. The State Government had already provided road connectivity. The much-hyped project is scheduled for completion by 2012.

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The Road Ahead

As more hospitals are being set up, more state-of-the-art technology will be introduced and more choices will be offered to patients. To address the dearth of paramedic and nursing staff, hospitals are keen on starting paramedical and nursing colleges. During inauguration of Apollo Hospital, Bhubaneswar, Dr Prathap Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospital Group, pleaded to the Government regarding land for a medical and paramedical college. Kalinga Hospital, which started GNM nursing school in 2004, is scaling up its intake from 50 to 100 students a year. Some are optimistic that the city would become a Mecca for medical tourism for countries like Bangladesh and Nepal. With big moolah pouring in, a steady infrastructure and active support from the Government, it can only be sunshine!

rita.dutta@expressindia.com