BJD Slams BJP Govt Over Odisha Coastal Highway Tender Cancellation

Bhubaneswar: The opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has sharply criticized the National Highways Authority of India’s (NHAI) decision to cancel tenders for the Odisha coastal highway, terming it a “betrayal” by the “double-engine” BJP governments at the Centre and in Odisha.

The move has cast uncertainty over the future of the 346-km project, which is already facing delays.

In a press conference here, senior BJD leader and former Minister Sanjay Das Burma condemned the annulment of tenders for four segments of the highway’s first phase, attributing it to last-minute changes in plans due to revised traffic volume projections.

He highlighted that the detailed project report (DPR) for the highway has been altered three times, and the decision to downgrade the project from a four-lane to a two-lane highway has raised further concerns.

The repeated cancellation of tenders and changes to the project scope show a lack of commitment by the BJP governments. This is a betrayal of Odisha’s people, Das Burma said while drawing parallels with the uncertainty surrounding the Bhubaneswar metro rail project.

The coastal highway, a much-anticipated infrastructure project, aims to enhance connectivity along Odisha’s coastline. However, the latest tender cancellations have fueled doubts about its timely completion, with the BJD accusing the BJP government of mismanagement and undermining the state’s development.