BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Thursday said that Odisha has emerged as one of India’s strongest-performing state economies, combining robust growth with fiscal discipline.
Addressing the governing council meeting of NITI Aayog chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, the chief minister said the state recorded a growth rate of 7.9 per cent in 2025-26 while maintaining fiscal deficit and debt levels within the limits prescribed under the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) framework.
Majhi said Odisha secured the top position in NITI Aayog’s Fiscal Health Index 2026 for its ‘responsible governance and sound financial management.’
He attributed the state’s economic momentum to strong investment in infrastructure and Centre-state collaboration under the double-engine government framework. He noted that the Union Budget 2026-27 allocated Rs 10,928 crore for railway development in Odisha, while railway projects worth more than Rs 90,000 crore are currently under implementation across the state.
The state is also positioning itself as a major logistics and industrial hub, Majhi said and cited the proposed Bahuda deep sea port, development of National Waterway-5 and the recent approval of two semiconductor projects under the India Semiconductor Mission as key drivers expected to strengthen manufacturing, trade connectivity and investment inflow.
From inclusive human development to early childhood care,from skilling to creation of a knowledge economy and development of sports infrastructure and well-being, Majhi listed out key drivers which will enable Odisha to play a lead role in the Prime Minister’s vision of a Viksit Bharat by 2047.
Majhi said the state is placing technology at the centre of governance reforms. Odisha is harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) and digital platforms to make public service more citizen-centric, transparent and efficient.
A key initiative is Ama Sathi, a multilingual,voice-enabled platform that allows citizens to access government services through a simplified digital interface.
He said the state government is also exploring AI application in grievance redressal, service delivery, agriculture, healthcare, education and disaster management to improve decision making and enhance service outcomes.
In agriculture, Odisha has completed digital crop surveys covering more than three crore land parcels through the AgriStack platform, one of the most extensive such exercises in the country.
The data ecosystem is being integrated with input distribution, procurement systems and market access mechanisms to improve efficiency and farmer incomes. He said the state is also advancing structural reforms and inclusive development to create sustainable livelihoods.
“We have secured second rank in the country under the national deregulation initiative by implementing major ease-of-doing-business reforms, making Odisha more attractive for investment and job creation.”
The chief minister said Odisha’s approach combines economic growth, social development and technological innovation. “Sustaining our demographic advantage will require stronger alignment between human capital investments and emerging economic opportunities,” he said.