Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Cabinet on Wednesday approved 12 key proposals across multiple departments, including a landmark decision to provide free education to students from Kindergarten (KG) to Postgraduate (PG) level in government and government-aided educational institutions across the state.
The Cabinet meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi at the Conference Hall of Lok Seva Bhavan.
The approved proposals pertain to the Higher Education, Fisheries and Animal Resources Development, Electronics and Information Technology, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare, Works, Water Resources, School and Mass Education, and Revenue and Disaster Management departments.
Announcing the decisions after the meeting, Chief Minister Majhi said the BJP-led government is committed to making education accessible and affordable for every student. Under the new policy, students enrolled in government and government-aided educational institutions will be exempt from paying admission fees.
The Chief Minister said the initiative will come into effect from the 2026–27 academic session and is aimed at reducing the financial burden on families while improving enrolment and ensuring continuity in education.
However, he clarified that the policy will not apply to self-financing courses.
Among the other major decisions, the Cabinet approved the establishment of the Odisha State Data Centre 2.0 (OSDC 2.0), a significant digital infrastructure upgrade designed to strengthen the state’s e-governance ecosystem.
The Cabinet also gave its approval to a ₹949.35-crore infrastructure project for the construction of the Jaydev Vihar–Nandankanan Road corridor in Bhubaneswar to ease traffic congestion and enhance connectivity between Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
The project envisages the widening of the 9.5-km stretch from Kalinga Stadium Gate No. 4 to Raghunathpur Bridge into an eight-lane urban corridor equipped with multiple flyovers, grade separators, service roads, pedestrian facilities and other modern traffic infrastructure.