With the state government granting in-principle approval for the construction of new Secretariat and Assembly buildings, Odisha has approved a significant overhaul of its administrative and legislative complex.
According to The New Indian Express, the decision was made at a high-level meeting presided over by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, signaling the beginning of one of the state's biggest public infrastructure improvements in recent years.
Integrated Secretariat to Take the Place of Dispersed Offices
According to reports, the new Secretariat will be built according to the Central Secretariat model in New Delhi, with a designated chamber, lobby, and conference hall for each department.
A 12-story Secretariat-cum-Mantralaya (three basements, ground floor, and eleven stories) will be built in the first phase next to Kharvela Bhawan and the OSEPA campus.

In front of Lok Seva Bhawan, a three-story underground parking structure will be built.
According to the TNIE reports, a second 12-story office structure would be built between the Police Commissionerate and Nirman Soudha to house departments that need to be relocated during development.
According to reports, a number of offices in the reconstruction zone have been asked to find unoccupied government space or rent temporary space. The duty of creating the comprehensive project report and cost estimates has been assigned to the Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation Limited.
The new Assembly complex will become the emphasis after the first phase is completed. Plans call for a building with three basements, a ground floor, and a one-story hall that is supported by a service block and an annexe Secretariat building.

After the state has given permission to create Vidhan Parishad, the new Assembly building is anticipated to open. The idea calls for the Legislative Council to remain in the current facility while the Assembly relocates to the new complex.
Potential President Murmu Visit
The plans for redevelopment coincide with the Assembly's ongoing renovations. Preparations have started for President Droupadi Murmu's potential visit towards the end of November, which might be her first speech to the Odisha Assembly since taking office, according to Law and Works Minister Prithviraj Harichandan.
The Assembly Secretariat has begun renovating the President's customary chamber and performing other interior work in preparation for the winter session while the official itinerary from Rashtrapati Bhavan is awaiting.