___________

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

The Orissa government has allotted 110 acres of land to 55 industrial units for the proposed food processing park project being developed at Malipada in Khurda district.

“The food processing park would be developed on 162 acres of land. The state government has already allotted 110 acres to 55 units. It will invest Rs 9.9 crore on infrastructure development for this food park and out of this Rs 1.91 crore has already been deposited with the Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation of Orissa (Idco)”, said state industries minister Raghunath Mohanty.

Besides the food processing park, the state also planned to develop a mega food park at Khurda and the proposal is under the consideration of the Government of India, the minister stated.

The mega food park project, which is to be developed on around 200 acres of land, has the potential to attract investments to the tune of Rs 2000 crore. …

The government had roped in IL&FS as a consultant to help boost investments in the food processing sector. Tenders for this project were likely to be invited by August this year. …

Pointers to previous posts on this:

• June 16 2010: More details on the role of IL&FS.
• Foodpark to come up in Malipada (Khurda) and Diagapahandi (Ganjam).

Following is an excerpt from a report in Telegraph.

To reduce road traffic congestion, the state transport department has initiated steps to connect the twin city of Bhubaneswa and Cuttack by metro rail. The service would cover almost 150 km between the two cities touching 20 vital points.

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has been asked to conduct a survey. Later the state government would undertake the construction work with technical assistance from DMRC. “The work is expected to be over by 2030. The construction work would start from 2020,” said transport secretary Satyabrata Sahu.

The service would be extended upto the expanded areas of Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) and Cuttack Development Authority (CDA). “It means, people can travel from Jatni to Choudwar, about 55 km”, he said.

Considering the cost component, the state government has planned to lay separate over-road tracks for metro rails instead of underground ones.

Trains will sneak through major junctions, covering almost 150 km. Soon after the survey, the state government would make budgetary provisions for laying of tracks.

…  “It is expected that the population of the twin cities will cross 50 lakh by the end of 2030. Immediate steps need to be taken to shift traffic congestion. As a solution to the traffic congestion, we have planned to introduce metro rail”, said transport minister Sanjiv Sahu.

The graphics accompanying this article has a dead link. It has the list of the 20 key places the metro rail will touch. By enlarging I could read the following names: Jatni, Khurda, P—, Khandagiri, Kalinga studio square, CRP square, Power house square, Jayadev Vihar, Acharya Vihar, Vani Vihar, Rasulgarh,  Naharkanta, Pahala, Phulnakhara, Link Road, Badam Badi, Mangalabag, OMP, Manguli Square, and Chowduar.

The target date to start construction is 2020 and operation is 2030. That is too far in the future. Kochi, which is a similar sized metro area as Bhubaneswar-Cuttack is far ahead in the process. See http://kochimetrorail.blogspot.com/. (As per the World-Gazetteer greater Bhubaneswar has a population of 1.696 million while greater Kochi has a population of 1.564 million.)

Following is an excerpt from a report in Telegraph.

Denizens working in various corporates and offices in the city have got used to the food from Gyanaranjan Behera’s small-time eatery situated in the premises of Ekamra Haat in the capital.

“We find the carriages at our mess when we return from class. It’s very convenient and easy on our pockets too,” said college-goer Sambit.

The eatery serves a number of local dishes and delivers meal everyday to corporate employees in the city within the stretch of Vani Vihar to Forest Park and Acharya Vihar.

“We have more than a hundred customers employed in banks and the corporate sector,” said Behera proprietor of Hotel Trupan.

… “It struck me that Bhubaneswar too is full of working people and even bachelors. So we decided to start the food delivery service here in 2004,” he added.

The service is almost always uninterrupted across twin cities, even on the days of severe weather. It is due to the uninterrupted supply chain service that has made it such a big hit.

“We provide our own carriages and collect theses from our customers in the evening,” said Behera.

With the number of private hostels and messes growing in the city, food is also delivered to students.

The eatery serves vegetarian preparations in which onion and garlic are not used.

It starts preparing the dishes from 10am and the meals get ready for supply by 12 at noon.

The delivery starts at 12.30pm and reaches the customers by 1.30pm.

The service is provided from Monday to Saturday and the preparations are altered every day, except for dal, rice and chapati. Salad is in the list of regular menu. When it comes to curry, the eatery provides two preparations everyday such as mixed-vegetable curry, fried-vegetables, cauliflower curry, paneer dishes and so on.

“We have employed three people for the delivery purpose. Each carries 30 to 40 carriages in one trip,” said Behera.

“We try to add more preparations in the menu to offer a variety of dishes. Our customers have been receiving our service for the past six years and the orders are increasing everyday,” he said.

The payment is collected on a daily basis and the charge just Rs 25 per meal.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Telegraph.

The Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) has proposed to establish a satellite city, the first of it kind in Orissa, on the outskirts of the capital city. The new city will be set up over 1200 acres of land encompassing four villages of Jagasara, Madanpur, Jagasarapatna and Kaimati of Jatni and Khurda municipalities, 25 km from Bhubaneswar Municipal limits.

…“The city will house nearly one lakh people in its 20,000 dwelling units. It will cater to the needs of all sections of people – low-income group (LIG), middle-income group (MIG) and high-income group (HIG). The cost of a house for the low-income group people might start from Rs 2 lakh. Separate projects for water supply and electricity would be undertaken,” said Singhdeo.

“Emphasis would be given to provide separate houses to those families who would provide daily services to 20,000 housing units. This would help the city remain slum free,” said the vice chairman.

Twenty per cent of the total housing units with fixed construction area will be reserved for the LIG and MIG groups. The cost would range between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 10 lakh. However, there will be no restriction for the HIG group. They can buy plots and houses according to their financial capacity.

The new city is a major component of the Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP) prepared by the IIT Kharagpur. The CDP has given emphasis on two important aspects that have direct bearing with the denizens – insufficient houses and transport problem. Moreover, according to the CDP, the issue of the demand for housing will be resolved on a priority basis.

“The demand for proper accommodation has triggered the satellite city concept. The satellite city, planned on the fringes, is a first attempt of BDA. After the successful execution of this ring town, couple of other satellite cities would be planned as the operational area of BDA is expanding,” said the vice-chairman.

The satellite city, planned over 1200 acres, includes 94 acres as government land which has already been handed over to BDA. The BDA has started the construction of a boundary wall earmarking the land. Rest of the area would be acquired by the private parties. Details of the rehabilitation of people who are likely to be ousted are being worked out.

ILFS-IDC, an international construction company, has been appointed as the advisor for this new project, which will be developed on private public partnership (PPP) mode. About 30 private investors of national and international repute have participated in the tender process.

…, the BDA has decided to develop the satellite city like that of Navi Mumbai. The BDA has started developing infrastructure over 94 acres of government land. The process of acquiring private land has not been started yet. …

“The satellite city will house 60 feet to 200 feet wide roads and all drainage and sewerage system would be laid underground,” said the minister adding that the private investors would prepare their mater plan accordingly.

For the last couple of years the IT industry growth in Bhubaneswar had slowed down. With the economic mood of the country back in the positive direction projects put in the backburner are now getting to the forefront. Following is an excerpt from a report in Telegraph.

… The proposed IT-SEZ will come up near the Infocity-II at Godakashipur, 15 km from the city. The project that included an integrated township would require 613 acres of land, IT minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi said.

“While the proposed IT-SEZ would be set up in an area of 320 acres of land, an integrated township would be developed in the remaining 180 acres of the total area. The rest would be kept in store to meet the future needs of the department," Majhi said.

As per the proposed plan, schools, colleges, hospitals, hotels and amusement parks would be developed. …

… the proposed SEZ would provide jobs to more than one lakh IT professionals. Another four lakh people would gain suitable employment opportunities in the project, which was scheduled to start its operation during 2011-2012 financial year.

“The Orissa Computer Application Centre (OCAC) will set up a seven-storied incubation tower. All small and medium scale entrepreneurs, engaged in the IT business, would be provided space at the centre at an affordable price. The centre would come near Acharya Bihar,’’ he said.

Construction of the incubation centre has already started.

So far, two IT parks are operational in the city. The government has already signed MoUs with DLF and Raheja groups to set up two more parks in the city. The fifth park will be set up by the government’s Industrial Development Corporation (IDCO).

Raheja group is planning to set up the IT park with an investment of Rs 1,000 crore in an area of 100 acres. The group has opted for a site near the Infocity of Bhubaneswar.

Real estate giant DLF is setting up another park with an investment of Rs 1,000 crore. The foundation stone has already been laid for the DLF Infopark, which would come up in phases on 25 acres of land and is expected to generate about 40,000 direct and indirect employment.

The minister claimed that the IT firms operating from the state had exported software worth Rs 1,198 crore during 2009-10 as against Rs 1,171 crore in 2008-2009.

Officials from the IT department said it was one of the few cities in the country that boasts of the presence of the big four of Indian software exports. While Infosys and Satyam have been in the city for quite some time, TCS has already recruited about 500 people after starting its operation in 2007.

Wipro, too, has started building its campus.

Nearly 12,000 people are directly engaged in the various IT industries.

… Moreover, along with the SEZ and IT parks, the state government is also planning to set up an Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR) in the capital city. It would come up near Jatni, about 25 km from here. If things go right, it can attract an investment of Rs 15,000 crore, official sources said.

This is all good. The government should start steering away some of the IT firms to Berhampur, Rourkela, Balasore, and Sambalpur.

Following is an excerpt from a report in the Economic Times.

The Handloom Export Promotion Council (HEPC) …

The council decided to set up three more design centres at Varanasi and Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh and Bhubaneswar in Orissa. These centres would help handloom weavers improve product quality and design and thereby, fetch a better price.

The HEPC web site is http://www.hepcindia.com/. From that site I could not find information on existing design centers. However I came across the site of National Center for Textile design in Delhi. My guess is that similar centers will be established in the three locations mentioned above. The About Us page of the this center says the following:

The National Centre for Textile Design (NCTD) has been setup in January 2001, by the Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India,  with the objective of making innovative, ethnic and contemporary design available to the textile sector.

The main aim of the centre is to link people working in the centre with each other and to give the weavers & workers better exposure to the markets. This will enable them to have better livelihood and more sustainable development.

The centre has both online and offline activities.

The online sector will exhibit these designs nationally and globally to facilitate the textile sector in getting designs in time as per seasonal forecast requirements and to enable regions as well as to develop on each others’ concepts.

We would like people, like power loom workers etc. also to benefit from the centre. This is done in several ways as for instance exhibiting their designs on NCTD website. This will give them exposure to exporters, international buyers, design houses and will help to obtain a better price for their designs through design trends and forecasts on the website and they can respond to the demands of the market in a better way.

NCTD plan to link up Weavers’ Sevice Centres, Powe4rloom Service Centres and all other textile related sites to our main website through internet connectivity so that these centre can take quick and necessary advantages of the centre for the benefit of their members.

Trends and Forecasts
Both domestic and international forecasts are collated and provided in one place to cater to many middle level and smaller apparel and furnishings manufacturers, exporters and domestic textile traders and producers so that they can respond adequately and in a timely fashion to market requirements.

Virtual Museum of Heritage Textiles
This is a cyber museum of textiles collated down the ages. The material is sourced from other resources and kept as a library for future references. 

Design Pool
This is one of the most important components of the NCTD. This is basically a cyber collection of new individual designs, collected from different sources and posted at one location.

Handicraft Fabrics from India
This section is essentially a directory of handcrafted textiles from India which contains a visual factual information and technical specifications of the items produced.

The proposed design center will nicely compliment the following textile and handloom related institutes in Odisha.

• IIHT (Indian Institute of Handloom Technology), Baragarh
• NIFT (National Institute of Fashion Technology), Bhubaneswar
• ATDC (Apparel Training and Design Centers) centers in Odisha:
  • An Eastern zone hub at Bhubaneswar
  • An Eastern zone center at Rourkela
  • Eastern zone satellite centers at Berhampur, Baripada and Cuttack

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

Topping the lists of the prospective investors is Gokul Agrawal of CTC Education Pvt Ltd who intends to invest Rs 6000 crore over five years in developing a 1000-acre knowledge city.

In the higher education sector, Silicon University of the Silicon Valley Group has proposed to set up its campus in the state at a cost of Rs 300 crore. Investments would also be pouring in for the state’s hospitality sector with the US-based Best Western Hotel lining up a Rs 100-crore investment plan for setting up a chain of properties at Bhubaneswar, Paradip, Chilka and Jharsuguda.

Land could become an issue with respect to the proposed knowledge city. A city/town/community that may want such a knowledge city which, I am told, would include multiple universities could offer help in the land part. They should of course first investigate if the group really has that much money and if their plan is for real.

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 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 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 Samaja.

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.

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.

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.

…

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.

…

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

Update: Following are excerpts from a report in Business Standard.

Astha International Limited, one of India’s leading direct selling companies based out of Surat (Gujarat), would invest Rs 5000 crore on a slew of business ventures in Orissa by the end of 2012.

The investment which is to be raised through a mix of debt and internal accruals as well as from its 4.5 lakh odd distributors across the country, will be made on developing an integrated township project called ‘Astha City’ near Berhampur, a star hotel in Puri and a textile mill in Bhubaneswar.

Besides, Astha International would set up a dairy production unit, a multiplex and a hyper mall in the city.

The company has opened an office in the city and this would serve as the zonal office for the states of Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal.

Together, all these projects will generate direct employment for over 10,000 people in the state.

All these projects are expected to be commissioned by the end of 2012.

"… The company would first begin with the integrated township project for which it has already identified around 200 acres of land near Berhampur.”

The company is betting big on the Orissa market which currently accounts for about 50 per cent of its overall revenues.

Astha International which has operations in 12 states of the country, clocked a revenue of Rs 300 crore in the last fiscal.

Out of 4.5 lakh distributors of the company, 1.5 lakh are based out of Orissa.

Astha International, which has more than 10,000 products in 26 different segments, also plans to float a bank called Astha Bank by 2011-12.

“We have already got the license of the Reserve Bank of India for starting banking operations and our bank will commence operations from 2011-12”, Chauhan claimed.

The website of this company is http://www.asthainternational.in/. In that site they mention an Astha city in Gujarat. Following is from Samaja.

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

The Orissa government has approved nine more solar power projects with an aggregate generation capacity of 57 Mw.

The State Technical Committee (STC), headed by the secretary in the science and technology department, cleared these projects recently.

With this, the total envisaged solar power capacity in the state has gone up to 351 Mw from 294 Mw earlier.

Projects with an aggregate generation capacity of 45 Mw were approved under the Bundling Scheme for Solar Power Plants of the Union ministry of New and Renewable Energy Sources (MNRE). Similarly projects of 12 Mws were approved under the Generation Based Incentive Scheme for Roof Top and Small Solar Generation of the Central sector utility major, National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).

The projects approved under the Bundling scheme included Skygen Infrabuild (P) Ltd (5 Mw), Rajratna Energy Holdings (10 Mw), MGM Minerals (5 Mw), Konark Kranti Energy (P) Ltd (5 Mw) and Sunark Solar (P) Ltd (20 Mw).

Skygen Infrabuild plans to set up a 5 Mw solar power project in Khurda district. Similarly, Rajratna Energy Holdings is interested to set up 10 Mw solar power plant in Dhenkanal district.

While the solar plants of MGM Minerals and Sunark Solar would come up in Khurda district, Konark Kranti Energy proposes to locate its unit Dhenkanal district.

On the other hand, four projects cleared under the Roof Top and Small Solar Generation scheme of NTPC included 3 Mw plant of Sunark Solar (Khurda district), 3 Mw project of Abacus Holdings (Ganjam district), 3 Mw project of Orion Solar Projects (Cuttack district) and 3 Mw plant of Skygen Infrabuild (Khurda district).

1. Economic Times on 3 more terminal markets in Odisha:

Orissa government will provide four terminal market yards to enable the farmers to sell their produce at market prices…. One of the terminal has already been constructed at Sambalpur with an investment

of Rs 86 crore and three others are coming up at Cuttack, Berhampur and Rourkela,…

2. Business Standrad on MOU with five IPPs for 4800 MW power:

The cumulative capacity of these projects would be 4800 Mw and the total investment is envisaged to be Rs 23203.52 crore.

With this, the total power generation projected in the state would increase to 31100 Mw from 26300 Mw earlier.The Orissa government has already inked MoUs with 21 IPPs with an aggregate generation capacity of 26,300 Mw earlier.

… Five companies who signed the MoU included BGR Energy System, JR Powergen Private Ltd, Adhunik Power and Natural Resources Ltd, Maa Durga Thermal Power Company Ltd and Vijaya Ferro and Power Private Ltd.

JR Powergen Private Ltd would set up a 1980 Mw thermal power plant at Kishorenagar near Angul at an investment of Rs 7988 crore. BGR Energy Systems Ltd also plans to set up a 1320 Mw power plant at Bhapur in Nayagarh district at an investment of Rs 6287 crore.

Similarly, Adhunik Power and Natural Resources Ltd would set up a 1320 Mw power plant at Birmaharajpur in Sonepur district entailing an investment of Rs 8079.74 crore. All these proposals were cleared by the High Level Clearance Authority (HLCA) chaired by the chief minister Naveen Patnaik.

On the other hand, Maa Durga Thermal Power would set up a 60 Mw ((2x30Mw) power plant at Tangi in Cuttack district, involving an investment of Rs 296.95 crore. Besides, Vijaya Ferro and Power Private Ltd, planning to set up a 120 Mw power plant (IPP) at an investment of Rs 550 crore at Kesinga (Turla Khamar) in Kalahandi district.

The total land requirement for these projects have been assessed at 4360 acres and about 22,325 direct and indirect employment opportunities are expected to be created when these projects would be fully commissioned. Three projects namely BGR Energy System, JR Powergen Private Ltd, Adhunik Power and Natural Resources Ltd would source water from the Mahanadi river system, Maa Durga Thermal Power would draw water from Birupa river.Vijaya Ferro and Power plans to source water from Tel river.

3. Hindu on preliminary bids for UMPP at Bedabahal:

the government was likely to invite preliminary bids for the 4,000-MW Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP) at Bedabahal in Orissa by April 30.

The request for qualification (RSQ) for the project may be issued by April 30.

This Bedabahal project would be the sixth UMPP project. The government has already awarded four UMPPs, of which three — Sasan in Madhya Pradesh, Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Tilaiya in Jharkhand — have been bagged by Reliance Power.

4. Sify on 595 crores for waterbody upgrade:

As many as 1817 water bodies, mostly the minor irrigation projects (MIPs) in 20 districts of Orissa, would be revitalized under the Centrally sponsored scheme of Repair, Renovation and Restoration (RRR) of Water Bodies.

These water bodies would be revitalized within a period of three years at an estimated cost of Rs 595.14 crore.

The funding for these projects would be shared between the Government of India and the Orissa government in the ratio of 90:10 for the Maoist infested, drought prone and backward districts of Kalahandi, Bolangir and Koraput (KBK).

For the other districts, the share between the Centre and the state government will be 25 per cent and 75 per cent respectively.

While the design ayacut of all 1817 projects was 2, 48,545.86 hectares, the irrigation potential of an additional 89,110.02 hectares of land would be revived through these projects, sources said.

Most of these projects under the RRR scheme are being taken up in south Orissa’s Ganjam district. About 800 projects under the scheme are to be taken up in the district at a cost of Rs 250.87 crore.

… Apart from Ganjam and KBK, the other districts where the scheme will be implemented are Bargarh, Bolangir, Gajapati, Jajpur, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Koraput, Mayurbhanaj, Nabarangapur, Nayagarh, Nuapada, Rayagada, Sambalpur, Sundargarh, Balasore, Malkanagiri, Subarnapur, Deogarh and Dhenkanal.

The pilot project for this scheme was implemented for 137 projects in Ganjam and Gajapati districts at a cost of Rs 18.84 crore during 2005-06 to 2008-09.

5. Hindu on Japan giving 150 crores for an irrigation project:

Japan will also give … over Rs 150 crore for Rengali irrigation project in Orissa.

6. Hospitalitbizindia on a mega food park at Malipada, Khurda:

Government of India is likely to set up a mega food park and a marine food park at Malipara near Khurda in Orissa with an area of 282 acres. This information was given by Subodh Kant Sahai, Union Minister for Food Processing while responding to a demand raised by Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister, Orissa at the Orissa Investors meet 2010.

Following are excerpts from a report in Business Standard.

The Orissa government has urged the Centre to develop Digha-Talsari tourism circuit to attract more tourists to these locations. It is proposed to be developed in public-private-partnership (PPP) mode.

Since the state government has already identified 700 acres of land for the project, the state has urged the Union ministry of tourism to initiate measure for the development of this circuit.

It figured in the discussion of the chief minister Naveen Patnaik with the visiting Union minister of state for tourism, Sultan Ahmad in the state secretariat today.

Ahmad is reported to have agreed to provide Central support for the international convention centre being planned in Bhubaneswar.

“The chief minister has proposed the setting up an international convention centre to attract tourists to Orissa. We will consider the proposal”, Ahmad told the media after meeting Patnaik.

… On the extension of the ‘Maharaja Express Classical India’ train to Bhubaneswar, the minister said, the ministry would consider and hold discussion on it after the state government sends its proposal.

…  Since the existing packaging of the train is for 12 days and 11 nights, it can come from Delhi via Bodhgaya-Kolkata to Bhubaneswar by extending the package to 12 days and 12 nights.

Similarly, the state government has sought the conversion of the status of Food Craft Institute at Bolangir into an Indian Institute of Health Hotel Management (IIHM). The state government would provide additional land for it. Besides, the government has also urged the Centre to set up a IIHM at Rourkela, Mishra added.

Following is from http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=59882. The Odisha part and some other important parts are highlighted in red by me.

CCEA Decision

            The CCEA today approved a Rs.1156 crore World Bank assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) Project.  This project is to be implemented over the next five years by the Ministry of Environment and Forests. The World Bank’s contribution as soft loan/IDA credit is around         Rs. 897 crore (78%).  This ICZM project assumes special significance in the context of climate change since one of the definitive findings of the IPCC relates to the increase in mean sea levels as a result of global warming.

            The ICZM project has four main components:

1.       National ICZM capacity-building at a total investment of about Rs.356 crore which will cover (i) mapping, delineation and demarcation of the hazard lines and delineation of the coastal sediment cells along the mainland coast of India; (ii) mapping, delineation and demarcation of environmentally-sensitive areas that require protection; (iii) establishment of a National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management at Anna University, Chennai; and (iv) a nation-wide training programme for coastal zone management.

2.       ICZM activities along the Gulf of Kachchh and in Jamnagar District in Gujarat at a total investment of around Rs.298 crore.

3.       ICZM and wetland conservation activities in two stretches of the Orissa coast (i) Gopalpur-Chilika; and (ii) Paradip-Dhamra at a total investment of Rs.201 crore.

4.       ICZM activities in Sunderban, Haldia and Digha-Shankarpur regions of West Bengal at a total investment of Rs.300 crore.

The project would develop capacity and institutions to effectively implement the CRZ Notification 1991, to control pollution of coastal waters and to expand livelihood options for coastal communities. The elaborate and extensive exercise in hazard mapping along the 7500-km coastline, which is being done for the first time, by the Survey of India at cost of Rs.125 crore will greatly assist in protecting coastal communities and infrastructure located in coastal areas.

The total number of direct beneficiaries of the project is close to 15 lakhs, while the number of indirect but identifiable beneficiaries will be close to 6 crore. The initial set of three states have been selected on various grounds including pressure on coast, presence of critical ecosystems, risks of natural hazards, etc. The Asian Development Bank is supporting a less comprehensive shoreline management project in Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa. It is envisaged that the second phase of ICZM would take up the other coastal states with project preparation in all remaining coastal states commencing immediately.

Of special focus in the project will be identification and demarcation of coastal fragile areas like mangroves, brackish water wetlands, coral reefs, etc based on which a new category of “Critically Vulnerable Coastal Areas”(CVCAs) would be designated and appropriate management plans implemented for their preservation and regeneration. These would include areas around Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Gulf of Khambat in Gujarat, Malvan, Vasasi-Manori,Achra-Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, Karwar and Coondapur in Karnataka, Vembanad in Kerala, Bhaitarkanika and Chilika in Orissa, Coringa, East Godavari and Krishna in Andhra Pradesh,Sunderban in West Bengal, Pichawaram and Gulf of Mannar in Tamil Nadu etc.

This is the second World Bank assisted project of the Ministry of Environment and Forests to be approved by the CCEA in the past two weeks. The first was a Rs. 350 crore project for initiating the process of remediation, rehabilitation and restoration of contaminated hazardous waste/municipal solid waste dumpsites in the country. There are over 120 such sites in different states and this project would be launched to clean-up 2 sites in Andhra Pradesh and 8 in West Bengal to begin with, apart from to prepare a national plan for remediation and restoration of all legacy contaminated sites which have become public health hazards.

*********

AD/LV

Recently unhappiness is brewing because of various trains bypassing Cuttack. See the following news item from Samaja.

I believe there is a easy solution to this: Develop the Naraj station to have express train stops and develop the accessibility of the Naraj station from the roads that goes from Naraj to Bidanasi side of Cuttack.

I wrote about it earlier in http://www.orissalinks.com/orissagrowth/archives/1967. Following are some excerpts from that article.

Naraj Station lies across Kathjodi river about 1 km away from the bridge. It is about 2 kms from the proposed 2nd campus of Ravenshaw university, 3-4 km from Bidanasi-CDA and within 1 km from the proposed Sri Sri University. 

Several trains in the BBS (Bhubaneswar)-SBP (Sambalpur) line such as 2893 (BBS-BLGR superfast), 8304 (Puri-SBP Intercity), 8405 (Puri-ADI), 8507 (VSK-ASR) skip Cuttack and go via Naraj without stopping there. By developing the Naraj station a bit more, developing the road between the station and the bridge, and introducing stops at Naraj station people in Cuttack will be able to easily access these trains.

… Naraj is really very close to Cuttack; much close to Cuttack than Barang or the proposed station between Barang and Patia. Also, Naraj station is much closer to the newer parts of Cuttack (such as CDA and Bidanasi) than the Cuttack station. Also, a lot of development is planned near Naraj that includes the Sri Sri University, National Law University and 2nd campus of Ravenshaw University. …

There were some concerns regarding the overlap with the proposed New Barang station between Patia and Bhubaneswar. I think with the rate Cuttack-Bhubaneswar area is growing even if a major station in the form of a New Barang station comes up, it will be still a good idea to have a express stop station in Naraj.

In the not too far future the greater Bhubaneswar area would need five stations: Khurda Rd, Bhubaneswar, New Barang, Cuttack and Naraj. The following map shows the five stations and the distance between them.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

“Zensar has communicated that it is keen to start construction work on its development centre soon. The Orissa Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Idco) has already given its in-principle approval to allot three acres of land to the software firm in the Infocity region of the city”, a top IT official told Business Standard.

Zensar Technologies plans to invest Rs 30-40 crore on its proposed software development centre. Initially, the centre would be run by a pool of 1,500 professionals but Zensar plans to make its Bhubaneswar centre the second biggest in the country after Pune where its centre is spread over 10 acres.

… Zensar has more than 4,000 employees in India and abroad. The company is rated among the top 25 software firms of the country by National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom).

Meanwhile, other major IT investors have also renewed their commitment on their proposed projects in the city.

MindTree expects to kick off construction work on its Rs 200-crore development centre in the city by June this year. … its centre which would come up over 30 acres of land.

…  MindTree would initially recruit about 1,000 software professionals and eventually ramp up its headcount to 6000. Its development centre in Bhubaneswar will focus on R&D, consultancy and software development.

ICICI Bank, which had sought an extension of two years for its Rs 600-crore eastern regional hub, has been asked by the state IT department to start construction work by April.

ICICI bank’s eastern regional hub would have a built-up area of 1.5 million sq ft and it will have a pool of 15,000 employees in the long-run. The project is to be developed in phases over a period of six to seven years. Similarly, Genpact, which had announced a Global Delivery Centre in the city, has submitted a fresh building plan to the Bhubanewar Development Authority (BDA).

Genpact’s centre in the city will have a total built-up area of 7 lakh sq ft. Initially, Genpact would hire 500 people for running its operations and eventually, the headcount will be scaled up to 3,000.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Hindu.

Indocopters, a Vectra Group company and distributor of Eurocopter in India, is planning to invest close to Rs. 150 crore in expanding its three maintenance, repair and overhaul centres located in New Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore.

The company will set up another MRO centre at Bhubaneswar in Orissa during the second half of the current year …