Odisha Cabinet Approves 800-Acre Bhubaneswar 'New City Development' Scheme

The decision

At its 26th meeting, held at Lok Seva Bhawan on September 10, 2025, the Odisha Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, approved the ambitious 'New City Development' scheme for Bhubaneswar. The decision was taken at the 26th meeting of the Cabinet held at Lok Seva Bhawan. Other official accounts describe this specifically as an in-principle approval to the "New City Development" scheme, proposing the creation of a modern and inclusive urban hub within the Bhubaneswar Development Plan Area. Briefing reporters, Chief Secretary Manoj Ahuja said the proposed new city will be developed over nearly 800 acres within the Bhubaneswar Development Plan Area (BDPA), covering Gothapatna, Malipada, and Daspur mouzas. Ahead of the meeting, the CM released a compilation of key decisions from the last 25 cabinet sessions, highlighting 149 resolutions across 34 departments, and the New City item was one of five proposals cleared that day, alongside decisions on ambulance procurement and recruitment-fee rules.

Operative details: area, boundaries and status

The project will cover nearly 800 acres of land across Gothapatna, Malipada, and Daspur, and is envisioned as a multi-economic growth zone aligned with the state's long-term vision Vikshit Odisha 2036. A later BDA briefing put the precise figure at 821.964 acres on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. One consultancy-appointment report also lists a fourth mouza, noting the project will come up across 800 acres in Daspur, Gothapatna, Mallipada, and Andharua on the outskirts of the capital city — a variation worth noting given the core Cabinet briefing named only three mouzas.

The scheme sits inside the Bhubaneswar Development Plan Area, and the Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) has been designated as the nodal agency for implementation. The approval is described consistently as "in-principle," meaning the concept, land footprint, funding envelope and lead agency are locked in, but statutory land-use notification, final master plan and land acquisition award are separate, subsequent steps.

Money and phasing

The project entails an estimated investment of Rs 8,179 crore over 15 years, combining public and private funding. For the first tranche, an initial allocation of Rs 1,342 crore has been earmarked in the state budget for 2025–26 to 2029–30 to cover land acquisition, road construction, core infrastructure, public amenities, and contingencies. (Some outlets reported this Phase 1 figure as Rs 1,312 crore; Rs 1,342 crore appears in the majority of contemporaneous accounts, including the Chief Secretary's own briefing.)

A subsequent statement in November 2025 by the Housing and Urban Development Minister gave a slightly different cost breakdown, saying the proposed project will require investment of Rs 8,169 crore of which Rs 6,069 crore has been pegged for built-up space and another Rs 2,100 crore for infrastructure, and added that the Centre will provide financial aid for the project. The Rs 8,169–8,179 crore figures likely reflect rounding/updates of the same estimate rather than a change in scope.

Design intent and stated objectives

Officials describe the New City as a transit-oriented, mixed-use township rather than conventional suburban sprawl. The new city will be developed as a transit-oriented township, with focus on efficient public transport, reduced travel distances, and seamless access to a well-integrated mix of land uses, and will ensure "Housing for All" by offering diverse housing options for all income groups based on affordability and necessity. Planned facilities include MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) facilities, innovation hubs, plug-and-play infrastructure, and data management centers. Officials have also flagged sustainability targets, with the BDA Vice-Chairman stating the city has been targeted to be a solar city with around 60 percent consumption of solar power. On population, an early BDA official estimate put residential facility of around 2 lakh people, while a later report on the consultancy appointment cited a lower figure of up to 15,000 housing units and 60,000 residents — a gap that should be resolved once the master plan is finalised.

Planned connectivity includes a four-lane road from Naka Gate Square to Kateni, alongside additional connecting roads, plus Mo Bus services with e-buses and integration with the Bhubaneswar Metro Train system.

The Surbana Jurong link

The Cabinet approval built on groundwork laid months earlier. A major milestone in the initiative came with the signing of an MoU between BDA and Surbana Jurong Infrastructure Pvt Ltd (SJI), Singapore, on January 17, 2025, in the presence of the President of Singapore and the Chief Minister of Odisha; SJI will provide consultancy and advisory support for master planning and urban infrastructure development in the greenfield township. That MoU was signed during the State Visit of the President of Singapore to India (January 14–18, 2025).

Work to operationalise that MoU continued well after the Cabinet's September 2025 approval. In January 2026, Surbana Jurong agreed to undertake projectisation of the New City Master Plan, identifying priority projects across short-, medium- and long-term horizons, and to provide technical handholding for preparation of Detailed Project Reports, alongside a comprehensive Urban Design Framework and Guidelines. On March 31, 2026, this scope was formalised when the Bhubaneswar Development Authority signed an agreement with Singapore's Surbana Jurong for preparation of a comprehensive master plan, signed by BDA Secretary Manas Ranjan Padhi and Surbana Jurong's Deputy Director Manideep Dutta.

Progress since the Cabinet decision

By November 2025, implementation had moved from approval to early execution: the Housing and Urban Development Minister said the BDA has started land acquisition process for the project, and a central government team had reportedly conducted a site survey. The Centre will provide financial aid for the project, per the minister's statement, though the size and terms of that support were not detailed in available reports.

Master-plan work has continued through early-to-mid 2026. A stakeholder kick-off consultation was chaired by Housing & Urban Development Additional Chief Secretary Usha Padhee, at which BDA Vice-Chairman Chanchal Rana informed that more stakeholder consultations involving local representatives and sectors such as hospitality, real estate, and transport would be conducted in the coming months, and that the Detailed Project Report (DPR) is expected to be completed within nine months. That same session noted the master plan, being prepared by Surbana Jurong Infrastructure Private Ltd (Singapore), follows a market feasibility study conducted in collaboration with global consultancy JLL. As of this writing, the DPR has not been reported as finalised.

Practical effect

The September 2025 Cabinet decision is a policy and budgetary green light, not a completed land-use notification. Its practical effects to date: (1) it formally commits the state budget to Rs 1,342 crore over five years for land acquisition and core infrastructure; (2) it names BDA as sole implementing authority, giving it a mandate to acquire land, negotiate with consultants and coordinate central assistance; (3) it converts the earlier BDA–Surbana Jurong MoU into an active, funded master-planning exercise with a defined scope and reporting deadline; and (4) it triggers the start of on-ground land acquisition in Gothapatna, Malipada and Daspur, as confirmed by the minister in November 2025. For residents and investors, the scheme remains at the planning and early land-assembly stage: the statutory master plan, zoning, plot layouts, and RERA-registrable phases had not been notified as of mid-2026, according to available reporting.

Separately, the same Cabinet session assigned administrative approval powers to the Chief Development Officer (CDO)-cum-executive officer of the Zilla Parishad, a move officials said will accelerate the processing of bills, eliminate delays caused by the necessity of multiple counter-signatures, and guarantee the timely execution of schemes — an administrative streamlining measure bundled into the same governance push, though not specific to the New City land parcel itself.