Odisha clears free textbooks for class IX & X, urban drainage scheme

The Odisha government on Tuesday approved free textbooks for around 28.7 lakh students of state-run schools, along with a Rs 500-crore programme to improve urban drainage and tackle flooding. The decisions were among 16 proposals approved at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi in Bhubaneshwar. The proposals, relating to 11 departments, will be implemented soon, Chief Secretary Anu Garg told reporters after the meeting. Garg said students of classes 9 and 10 in government and government-aided secondary schools, other than those covered under the existing SC and ST provisions, would now receive free textbooks. Students belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes were already receiving free textbooks, she said. “The scheme will remain in force for five years, from 2025-26 to 2029-30, with a total estimated outlay of Rs 284.07 crore, covering a tentative 28.7 lakh beneficiaries,” Garg said.Over 1,600 mistakes, including spelling errors and incorrect names of eminent personalities, were found in 55 textbooks supplied by the department.

The #Odisha Cabinet approved major projects focusing on skill development, urban drainage, fisheries, riverfront development and digital infrastructure. Key decisions include training 4.20 lakh youth, improving urban drainage systems, developing Astaranga Fishing Harbour, beautifying Cuttack's Mahanadi waterfront, establishing a Disaster Recovery-cum-Data Centre in Keonjhar and introducing industrial policy reforms.

— Soumyajit Pattnaik (@soumyajitt) October 13, 2026

In another major decision, the Cabinet approved the Urban Storm Water Drainage Management and Improvement Programme (USWDMIP), with an outlay of Rs 500 crore from the state’s own resources over a period of five years, from 2026-27 to 2030-31. The scheme will cover urban local bodies and selected block headquarters.
The Cabinet also approved the establishment of a Disaster Recovery-cum-Data Centre at Keonjhar to ensure the uninterrupted functioning of critical government digital services during major disruptions, including earthquakes and cyclones. The Odisha State Data Centre in Bhubaneswar hosts critical government applications, databases and platforms supporting government-to-government, government-to-business and government-to-citizen services.