Dikhyaa Mohanty 
On Day four of ‘Make in Odisha Conclave 2022’, one of the largest investment summits in India, the sectoral session on Real Estate and Urban Infrastructure was organized by the Housing & Urban (H&UD) Department on the theme of “Building next-gen Real Estate” in the presence of investors and officials from the H&UD Department.
During the inaugural session, the “Odisha Housing for All Policy for Urban Areas, 2022” was launched followed by an inaugural address by Usha Devi, Minister of Housing & Urban Development, Government of Odisha. The session also witnessed the launch of a white paper titled ‘Emerging hotspots of Odisha towards Inclusive Growth’ highlighting the pro-industry features envisaged in various policies and reformative initiatives of the Government to enable investment in the real estate sector in urban Odisha and to foster inclusive growth.
Speaking about the abundant opportunities in the State, Minister of Housing & Urban Development, Government of Odisha said, “Today we are witnessing radical changes in this sector, thanks to the progressive and proactive policy reforms introduced by H & UD Department such as Uniform Building and Planning Standards Rules, Housing for All Policy, CAF Rule, etc. for the entire state. As part of “ease of doing business” and 5T interventions of the State Government, e-governance services such as “SUJOG” and “House Allotment System”, etc. have been implemented successfully to ensure enhanced citizen satisfaction.”
G Mathi Vathanan, Principal Secretary, while delivering the keynote address, emphasized the efforts of the Department to introduce favourable policy frameworks for the promotion of Affordable Housing in the State. He said that the ‘Developers’ Area’ for commercial development under the PPP model of Affordable Housing has been increased from 35% to 60%, which is the highest in the country. The allotment for EWS and LIG houses is done end-to-end through a robust online ‘House Allotment System’ to bring accuracy and to make the allotment system hassle-free.
“With dynamism in policy and practice, we always amended our policies from time to time for encouraging real estate partners. We are giving 7% FAR which is the highest in the country. We intend to be partners in progress with all of the developers for real estate and urban infrastructure across the state’ he added further.
He also said the HUD Department is focused on universal growth for all 115 ULBs in the State. Odisha is the only state to implement 24*7 #DrinkFromTap service.
“We want our cities to be destinations of the future. With improved civic services and transparency in service delivery, Odisha is scripting new milestones in Urban Governance in the country. When we call Mo Sarkar, it means Your Sarkar. The philosophy of our CM in Odisha model of Governance is to ensure happiness through services and welfare” concluded Principal Secy, HUDD.
In his welcome address Balwant Singh, Vice Chairman of Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) said, as a city, we are smart-modern and yet culturally rich. We are inclusive in our plan n policies. We give priority to children, women, PWD, beggars, homeless, other marginalized communities in our efforts and initiatives. The urban infrastructure is with a social commitment is what we are looking at in our endeavours.
Among others, Balwant Singh, VC BDA Vijay Amruta Kulange, Commissioner, Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), A Shankar, Head – Strategic Consulting & Valuation Advisory, West Asia, JLL & Vipul Roongta, Member, FICCI National Committee on Real Estate and Managing Director and CEO, HDFC Capital Advisors shared their perspective to set the context of the sectoral session.
