Bhubaneswar, Jan 12 (IANS) Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday laid the foundation stones for three landmark projects — a new Secretariat building ‘Lokseva Bhawan’, a new Odisha Legislative Assembly building, and an elevated road corridor from Nandankanan to Jayadev Vihar — at a programme in Bhubaneswar during the observance of National Road Safety Month.

Referring to the recently-constructed Parliament building under Delhi’s Central Vista project, the Chief Minister said Odisha also needs a modern Legislative Assembly building capable of serving the state for the next 50 years.

CM Majhi said that following the upcoming delimitation process, the Assembly, which currently has 147 seats, may witness an increase of around 50 additional seats.

He further said the new Assembly will have enhanced seating capacity, with provisions to expand the number of MLAs from the present strength to around 200, with further scalability planned for up to 300 seats to meet future requirements over the next five decades.

The project will be developed as part of an integrated campus, while the existing Assembly building will continue to function until the new structure is completed.

The Chief Minister announced that Odisha will also get a new Secretariat building, ‘Lokseva Bhawan’, as the existing structure has become old and inadequate for present-day administrative needs.

He pointed out that outdated electrical systems, water pipelines and other infrastructure pose serious safety risks, including fire hazards.

The new Lokseva Bhawan will be a modern, technology-enabled administrative complex designed to meet future requirements while ensuring safety, efficiency and sustainability.

“Our government today laid the foundation stone for the new Legislative Assembly building and Lok Seva Bhawan building, both in one campus, on an area measuring 71.13 acres, and for this Rs 3,623 crore will be spent. These buildings will have all the advanced features,” CM Majhi said.

On the occasion, the Chief Minister also laid the foundation stone for a new elevated corridor from Jayadev Vihar to Nandankanan at an estimated cost of Rs 952 crore.

Highlighting Bhubaneswar’s growing traffic pressure, the Chief Minister said the Nandankanan–Jayadev Vihar stretch is one of the most congested corridors in the city.

To address this, the government has planned a well-designed elevated road (flyover) with integrated traffic management solutions.

He said the project has been planned on modern metropolitan lines, ensuring smooth traffic flow on the flyover along with improved junction management below.

The Detailed Project Report (DPR) has been completed, and the project has received formal approval, he added.

–IANS

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