CII conclave charts roadmap for Viksit Odisha

Jharsuguda: The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), in collaboration with the government of Odisha, organised the CII Odisha Mining Conclave 2025 at Jharsuguda. The event brought together over 250 leaders from industry, government, academia and allied sectors to deliberate on the future of mining and industrial growth in the State.

At the special plenary, Industries Minister Sampad Chandra Swain said Odisha is rapidly transforming from a mineral-rich State into a global industrial destination.

Since 2024, the State has approved Rs 8 lakh crore in new investments, generating over 2.5 lakh jobs. In the last quarter alone, projects worth Rs 5,770 crore across 50 sectors were launched, with over Rs 7,400 crore investments grounded, including solar projects at Gopalpur.

Additionally, Rs 5,380 crore worth of projects across 27 industries have commenced operations. The minister also announced plans for three new industrial parks in Jharsuguda, Sambalpur and beyond, focusing on emerging sectors like electronics, semiconductors and BPM, reaffirming the State’s commitment to a sustainable and employment-rich future by 2047.

Jharsuguda MLA Tankadhar Tripathy urged the industries to mentor local MSMEs and young entrepreneurs, emphasising skill development and technological collaboration. He said developing slurry pipelines from mines to ports would be a game changer for logistics efficiency and cost reduction, strengthening Odisha’s economic transformation.

Hemant Sharma, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Industries, underscored Odisha’s leadership in India’s industrial growth, driven by its mineral and metal advantage and Rs 1.4 lakh crore of new investments in Q1 2025. He emphasised the State’s focus on value addition, downstream cluster development and green, tech-driven mining, supported by transparent policies, long-term ore linkages and robust infrastructure, positioning Odisha as the Growth Engine of India’s next 25 years.