Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Cabinet, led by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, today gave its approval to 15 proposals of altogether 10 departments of the state government.

The Cabinet approved the ‘Intrastate River Linking Scheme’ in Odisha with an outlay of Rs 1,790 crore. The scheme will be executed over a period of five years, from 2025-26 fiscal to 2029-30 fiscal.

The scheme aims to optimize intrastate water distribution by connecting water-surplus river basins with water deficient regions, thereby improving drought resilience, creating additional water storage, mitigating flood risks and boosting agricultural productivity in Odisha, said the state government.

As per the Cabinet decision, six major projects will be executed under the Intrastate River Linking Scheme in Odisha. These projects are: Katra Link project, Vansadhara-Rushikulya Intra-Link project, Hiradharabati Flood Flow Channel project, Bahuda Tampara Link project, Ong-Suktel Garland Canal project and Telengiri-Upper Kolab PSP project.

The state government will launch a new scheme, Swachha Odisha, with an allocation of Rs 1,600 crore over five years starting 2025-26 financial year. The scheme today got the state Cabinet approval, added the government.

‘Swachha Odisha’ embodies the state government’s commitment to making the cities in the state clean and free of waste.

The initiative will support the urban local bodies (ULBs) by bridging funding gaps and aiming for complete saturation across all urban sanitation verticals.

The Swachha Odisha scheme will also complement the ongoing Swachha Bharat initiative, thereby further strengthening the desired outcomes in urban cleanliness and sanitation.

The introduction of Swachha Odisha aims to simplify procedures related to project implementation, funding and monitoring by consolidating various sanitation initiatives into a unified scheme, stated the government.