BHUBANESWAR: The state cabinet on Saturday approved a Bill to amend the Odisha Development Authorities (ODA) Act, 1982, for creation of Economic Region Development Authorities (ERDAs) to drive integrated planning and development of major urban and industrial corridors across the state.
The proposed Odisha Development Authorities (Amendment) Bill, 2026, seeks to provide a statutory framework for constituting ERDAs, beginning with the Bhubaneswar-Cuttack-Puri-Paradip Economic Region (BCPPER), which has been identified as a pilot City Economic Region, said chief secretary Anu Garg in her briefing after the cabinet meeting.
The amendment aligns with the state’s Vision 2036 and Vision 2047 roadmap, which envisages urbanisation as a key engine of economic growth through the planned development of city agglomerations as integrated economic corridors with modern infrastructure, efficient mobility, employment hubs and coordinated public services.
Apart from BCPPER, the government has identified the Bargarh-Jharsuguda-Sambalpur, Berhampur-Chhatrapur-Gopalpur and Jeypore-Koraput-Sunabeda urban agglomerations for phased development as economic regions.
Garg said an economic plan for BCPPER has already been prepared in collaboration with NITI Aayog. The region was also recognised in the Union budget 2026-27 as one of the four city economic regions identified nationally as future engines of economic growth, alongside Varanasi, Surat and Visakhapatnam.
The Bill proposes to insert new definitions of “Economic Region” and “Economic Region Development Authority” in section 2 of the ODA Act and introduce a new chapter IIA. The new provisions will empower the state government to notify and constitute ERDAs without requiring a fresh law for each new economic region.
The authorities will serve as overarching statutory bodies to coordinate the functioning of multiple development authorities within an economic region, enabling integrated planning beyond municipal boundaries. The framework will facilitate region-specific economic and master plans, improve infrastructure, housing, logistics and mobility, attract investments, generate employment and ensure seamless delivery of public services.
