11 Projects Worth Rs 3540 Cr Sanctioned Under OMBADC

Bhubaneswar: As many as 11 new projects estimated around Rs.3, 540 crore have been sanctioned from Odisha Mineral Bearing Area Development Corporation (OBBADC) fund for nine mineral bearing districts.

Chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi gave nod to these projects while presiding over the Board of Directors’ Meeting of OMBADC held at secretariat conference hall on Wednesday wherein chief executive officer, OMBADC Uma Nanduri presented financial, administrative and technical aspects for consideration.

Sanctioning the projects, the chief secretary directed that livelihood programmes under OMBADC for mineral bearing areas of the concerned districts should be taken up in convergence with Odisha Livelihood Mission.

The Board decided that additional drinking water projects for urban areas in the mineral bearing districts can be taken up under OMBADC.

Women & child development department was asked to formulate innovative programmes for improving the nutritional status of the children and reducing the IMR in mineral bearing areas. RWSS and Public Health Units in Keonjhar and Sundargarh districts were asked to conduct iron content test of both the deep and surface drinking water sources on regular basis.

Padhi further directed the concerned departments to monitor the water quality regularly in mining areas and take up necessary preventive steps.

A fly-over road near Joda town was sanctioned in the meeting for curtailing the dust and pollution in the town. The project is estimated at Rs 229.71 crore. It has been targeted to complete the project within a period of three years from the date of commencement of the work.

Padhi also asked the housing & urban development department to take up appropriate projects for improving the quality of living in Joda and Badbil towns of Keonjhar districts.

The newly sanctioned projects in the meeting include mega pipe water supply projects for rural areas in Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Koraput and Jajpur district; drinking water supply project for urban centers of Mayurbhanj and Koraput, livelihood promotion activities through SHGs in all the nine districts, livelihood promotion through fishery; strengthening of integrated child development scheme, integrated watershed management project, water conservation and improvement of ground water recharge projects, afforestation, renovation of urban water bodies and solid waste management in urban bodies.

Development Commissioner R Balakrishnan, additional chief secretary, forest and environment Suresh Chnadra Mohapatra, principal secretary steel and mines Raj Kumar Sharma, principal secretary, finance Tuhin Kanta Pandey, works department secretary Nalinikanta Pradhan, chief executive officer, OMBADC Uma Nanduri along with independent directors of the Board and senior officer members participated in the discussion.