States » EastPosted at: Sep 16 2026 6:48PM


Odisha: Sambalpur gets Doppler radar, 50 development projects worth Rs 960 crore launched

Bhubaneswar, Sep 16 (UNI) Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Wednesday inaugurated a state-of-the-art, ‘Make in India’ Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) at Sambalpur, aimed at strengthening weather forecasting and disaster management across western Odisha.
The radar, the third such facility in the state after Paradip and Gopalpur, will provide accurate weather data within a 250-km radius and track weather systems up to 450 km, Majhi said at a function at Gangadhar Meher University here.
He also inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for 50 development projects worth around Rs 960 crore.
The projects include 15 completed schemes worth Rs 133.47 crore and 35 new projects worth Rs 825.83 crore covering health, rural development, sports, roads and buildings, and water resources.

Among them are mega lift irrigation projects worth Rs 220.56 crore, minor irrigation projects worth Rs 8.88 crore, road and building works worth Rs 585 crore, and a Rs 60.50-crore rural development project for Kuchinda.
The radar will benefit 13 districts, including Sambalpur, Bargarh, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Balangir, Angul, Kalahandi and Keonjhar, besides parts of neighbouring Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
It will provide advance information on thunderstorms, lightning, heavy rainfall and hailstorms. The system will estimate rainfall every 10 minutes at a resolution of 150 metres and help improve inflow management of the Hirakud reservoir, the Chief Minister said.
Bargarh, Odisha’s major rice-producing district, and farmers across the Mahanadi basin are expected to particularly benefit from improved early-warning systems.
The radar will also help the power, industrial, transport and grid-operation sectors take precautionary measures, Majhi said.

The state government is developing a technology-driven, proactive disaster management system and plans to install additional Doppler radars at Balasore, Bhubaneswar and Puri, he said.
Union Earth Sciences Minister Jitendra Singh, in a virtual address, described the Sambalpur radar as a major milestone in the country’s weather forecasting system. He said another 40 Doppler radars would be added across the country in the coming days.
Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said the Sambalpur radar fulfilled a long-standing demand of western Odisha and would strengthen the state’s ‘Zero Casualty’ approach to disaster management.
Majhi said around Rs 1,910 crore worth of development works had been undertaken in Sambalpur in the year up to September. These include a Rs 1,521-crore four-lane bypass, Rs 1,700-crore expansion of VIMSAR, a Rs 100-crore Aqua Park and the Rs 100-crore Samalei Phase-II project.
He also highlighted ongoing industrial investments, including a Rs 40,000-crore Hindalco expansion at Lapanga and a Rs 32,000-crore JSW-JFE Steel project at Rengali.
Officials, public representatives and senior government functionaries attended the event.
UNI MK RSA
Tags: #Odisha: Sambalpur gets Doppler radar# 50 development projects worth Rs 960 crore launched
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