World Bank Group President Ajay Banga met Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on January 29, 2026, at Bhubaneswar’s Lok Seva Bhawan to discuss leveraging international finance and expertise to accelerate Odisha’s ambitious development roadmap. The discussions focused on aligning global investment, technical assistance, and policy advisory with the state’s Vision 2036 and 2047 goals, emphasizing inclusive growth, employment generation, and institutional strengthening.
Odisha’s Strategic Push for Reform and Investment
Odisha is positioning itself as a leading growth engine in eastern India. Under the state’s reform-led framework, authorities are targeting improvements across infrastructure, agriculture, tourism, MSMEs, and skill development for youth and women. The Chief Minister highlighted the state’s success in attracting investments worth ₹2.5 lakh crore, with the Utkarsh Odisha summit securing 593 MoUs totaling ₹5.82 lakh crore—of which 103 projects worth ₹2.14 lakh crore are already underway, creating over 1.5 lakh jobs.
The Banga visit underscores the World Bank’s recognition of Odisha’s governance reforms and signals potential scaling of international collaboration to support the state’s long-term economic objectives.
World Bank’s Previous Engagements in Odisha
· Odisha Disaster Recovery Project ($153M, 2014): Rebuilt 100,000+ resilient homes post-Cyclone Phailin and strengthened the state’s emergency management capacity.
· Odisha Integrated Irrigation Project for Climate-Resilient Agriculture ($200M+, 2019-onwards): Renovated 1,000+ irrigation tanks benefiting 50,000 farmers through climate-adaptive farming practices.
· Odisha State Road Project (2000s–2010s): Developed over 2,000 km of rural roads, enhancing connectivity and local economic activity.
· Odisha Higher Education Program for Excellence and Equity ($150M): Upgraded universities and expanded equitable access, strengthening research and faculty capabilities.
· Odisha Climate Resilient Watershed Management Project (~$100M, 2019): Improved watershed management to boost agricultural productivity and resource conservation.
· Odisha Rural Livelihoods Project: Supported women’s self-help groups, reducing poverty and increasing income through structured livelihood programs.
· Odisha State Capability and Resilient Growth Program: Recent initiatives focus on fiscal reforms and resilience-building.
These investments have strengthened disaster preparedness, increased agricultural yields by over 20%, and improved rural connectivity—aligning with the state’s current reform agenda emphasized during Banga’s visit.
Analytical Perspective: Leveraging Global Finance for Sustainable Development
Banga lauded Odisha’s reform-driven strategy, noting the state’s potential as a model for private sector-led employment growth and inclusive development. Key areas of focus for future collaboration include:
· Skill Development: Expanding technical training through institutions like the Central Tool Room & Training Centre, targeting over a million youth annually.
· Infrastructure & Green Projects: Financing resilient urban and rural infrastructure to mitigate climate and demographic pressures.
· Institutional Capacity Building: Strengthening public-private partnerships, improving ease-of-doing-business, and scaling governance reforms.
Odisha’s 8.5% GDP growth in FY25 positions it as eastern India’s economic hub, and strategic partnerships with the World Bank could accelerate progress toward a projected $1 trillion economy by 2047.
A Roadmap for Reform-Led, Sustainable Growth
The meeting between Ajay Banga and CM Majhi signals a strengthened partnership between Odisha and the World Bank, combining state-level reform momentum with global finance and technical expertise. By scaling past successes in infrastructure, agriculture, education, and resilience, Odisha can harness international support to deliver inclusive growth, expand employment, and enhance institutional capacity. This collaboration exemplifies how federal, state, and multilateral engagement can drive transformative, sustainable development in India’s emerging states.
(With agency inputs)
