Odisha included in India’s first coastal economic corridor of 1700 km

India’s first coastal economic corridor stretching from Visakhapatnam to Chennai would cover Odisha.

The decision for Odisha’s inclusion in the East Coast Economic Corridor was taken after talks between top state officials and a visiting team of the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

With inclusion of Odisha in the East Coast Economic Corridor (ECEC), the State Government on Friday decided to prepare the Conceptual Development Plan (CDP) by March, 2017.

The ADB funded project is India’s first coastal corridor, covering 1700 km of the country’s coastline and connecting the mineral rich hinterland with six major ports and three deep draught ports.

The corridor’s coverage in Odisha is expected to boost the state’s industrial activities, particularly in auto, electronics, petrochemicals, petroleum, iron, steel, food processing, textiles, naval shipyards, and defence and space exploration. The project would have two dimensions- infrastructure development and investments for node centric development.

The technical teams of ADB would make assessment of land requirement, clearance from coastal areas, floodline, forest and other restricted areas, connectivity with highways, rail network, proximity to ports and airports as well as availability of utilities like power and water.

ALSO READ: Odisha youth enters into India Book of Records