Odisha is not short of money for roads, buildings or bridges. What it cannot afford, Works, Law and Excise Minister Prithviraj Harichandan told officials on Thursday, is delay, poor quality, or yesterday’s construction methods.
Chairing a high-level review at Lokseva Bhawan, the minister put a simple test before engineers and administrators: match the pace of a growing state with the best practices of developed countries. That means modern technology in every project, wider use of precast construction, regular maintenance of roads and buildings, environment-friendly construction, and faster completion of heritage works.
“There is no shortage of funds for the state’s development work,” Harichandan said. From roads and buildings to bridges, both the state and the Centre have prepared multiple schemes. The challenge now is to move with the times. “We have to adopt the best models of developed countries. Correct use of modern technology and artificial intelligence must strengthen durability and quality in construction.”
The review covered a wide map of work already under way or in the pipeline: National Highway projects, Bhubaneswar’s traffic decongestion plan, the Puri heritage project, proposed elevated roads at several locations, the Jayadev Vihar–Nandankanan Road, renovation of Gundicha Temple, and green building construction.
Harichandan pointed to a lesson the department has already learned. New methods have not only made work easier, they have also helped finish projects faster. Precast construction, he said, should get special weight because it can cut site delays and improve consistency. But speed without strength is no victory. Durability and workmanship must stay at the centre of every tender and every site inspection.
The meeting also turned to the unglamorous work that keeps a city liveable: regular repair of roads and buildings. Officials were told that construction is incomplete if maintenance is treated as an afterthought.
On heritage, the message was sharper. Work on the Puri heritage project and related temple-side development, including Gundicha Temple renovation, should be finished quickly. For Bhubaneswar, the discussion returned to a problem residents feel every day: congestion. Elevated corridors were examined as a way to separate through traffic from local movement and ease pressure on key stretches.
Principal Secretary of the Works Department Sanjay Kumar Singh attended the meeting and placed proposals on how projects can move faster while staying aligned with the state government’s priorities.
Among those present were OBCC Managing Director Anupam Saha; EIC and Special Secretary Eng. Sameer Hota; EIC (Civil) Eng. Satyabrata Behera; Financial Advisor Ratikanta Mohapatra; Additional Secretary Pradeep Kumar Sahu; Chief Construction Engineer Eng. Manoj Mahananda; Chief Engineer Shivabrata Taria; National Highways Chief Engineer-1 Eng. Narayan Patel; National Highways Chief Engineer-2 Deepak Kumar Panigrahi; and OBCC Chief Manager Sridhar Rout.
