By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR/NEW DELHI:Under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Central Government has given top priority to the progress and infrastructure development of Odisha. In the Union Budget 2026-27, a historic grant of Rs. 10,928 crore has been provided for the overall development of Odisha’s railway infrastructure, which will pave the way for the progress of the state, said Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Shri Pradhan ‘X’ has thanked Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, Union Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman and Railway Minister Shri Ashwani Baishnab on behalf of the people of Odisha for this record number of grants. He said that the grants received by Odisha during the Modi government are 13 times more than the average during the Congress government of 2009-14. Currently, various railway projects worth about Rs. 90,659 crore are being implemented in the state. In the last 11 years, 2,200 km of new railway tracks have been built in the state, which is more than the entire railway network of countries like Malaysia. Along with this, Odisha has now achieved the glory of 100 percent railway electrification, which is a shining example of the ‘service and good governance’ of the Modi government.He further said that under the ‘Amrit Station Scheme’ in Odisha, the work of modernizing 59 stations is underway at a cost of Rs 2,439 crore. Out of this, the work of 6 stations in Cuttack, Talcher, Baripada, Barpali, Bimalagarh and Paralakhemundi has been completed. 6 Vande Bharat and 6 Amrit Bharat Expresses running in the state have made passenger transport services more convenient. 632 flyovers and underpasses have been constructed for the safety of passengers and the latest ‘Kachch’ safety system is being widely used.
The ‘Dedicated East-West Freight Corridor’ proposed in the current budget is going to create a golden opportunity for the economy of Odisha. This corridor will connect Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Gujarat from West Bengal via Jharkhand and Odisha and will bring about a paradigm shift in the industrial and passenger services sector of the state. This record amount of grant under the ‘Purrooday Mission’ will create new jobs for the youth of Odisha and will form a strong pillar in the formation of ‘Developed Odisha’, said Shri Pradhan.
