As most states race to attract technology capital, Odisha is placing a multi-pronged bet on semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence (AI) and large-scale skilling as it works towards a USD 500 billion economy by 2036.
The state, long associated with mining and metals, is seeking to reposition itself as a low-cost, fiscally stable destination for electronics manufacturing, data centres and global capability centres (GCCs), senior officials said at GFTN’s Black Swan Summit.
“We are a power-surplus state and we have the cheapest power tariff in the country,” Vishal Kumar Dev, Additional Chief Secretary, Electronics and IT, Government of Odisha, told BW Businessworld in an interview on the sidelines of the summit.
Industrial power tariffs in Odisha stand at about Rs 5.70 per unit, compared with Rs 10-12 in some southern states, Dev said, which makes Odisha attractive for power-intensive investments such as data centres and semiconductor units.
Odisha’s strategy comes as competition among states like Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Assam intensifies for electronics and chip manufacturing projects under India’s broader push to build domestic supply chains and reduce dependence on imports.
Semiconductor Push Gathers Pace
Semiconductors have been designated a ‘thrust sector’ under Odisha’s policy framework, attracting the highest level of incentives within the state’s IT and electronics portfolio.
The state offers a 30 per cent capital investment subsidy for semiconductor projects, rising to 50 per cent for the first five investments, with customised incentive packages available for large-scale projects, Dev said.
Odisha already has three semiconductor-related projects underway and another three in the pipeline. The state is in talks with several Malaysian semiconductor companies, primarily assembly, testing, marking and packaging (ATMP) and outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) players, to develop an electronics and semiconductor park soon.
Among the projects already approved is a Rs 2,200 crore investment by US-based 3D Glass Solutions, through its Indian subsidiary HIPS, for advanced glass substrate packaging technology. The project has received clearance under the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM), Dev said, adding that Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan is among the promoters of the company.
Odisha has also introduced a top-up incentive scheme aligned with the central government’s Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme (ECMS), offering additional benefits to projects approved by New Delhi that choose to locate in the state.
“While semiconductor investments are gaining momentum across India, Odisha is among the states that has been actively shaping policy to support the creation of a strong semiconductor ecosystem,” said Anshuman Tripathi, Tech Evangelist and Former Member of the National Security Advisory Board.
Power Surplus To Compute Surplus
At the summit, the Odisha government signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Sarvam AI to build sovereign AI park in the state, signalling its intent to extend its energy advantage into digital infrastructure.
“This is a joint commitment to build sovereign AI infrastructure in the state,” Pratyush Kumar, Co-founder at Sarvam AI told BW Businessworld. “It is about service delivery, building talent, and attracting startups and GCCs. Growing from a power-surplus state to a compute-surplus state. That is the vision.”
Odisha was the first Indian state to roll out an AI policy aligned with the IndiaAI Mission and has launched its own Odisha AI Mission. Two centres of excellence (CoE) are under development, with pilot projects planned across healthcare, education, agriculture and disaster management.
AI is also being deployed internally to improve government productivity, including tools that generate meeting minutes automatically and an in-house platform, Sushasan Sahayak, that allows officials to query financial and administrative rules using machine-readable data, shared Dev.
Services Growth And Structural Recalibration
While Odisha is betting on services-led growth, the transition has not been linear. The state’s services share declined from 38.5 per cent to 34.9 per cent in recent years, according to the Economic Survey 2026-27, challenging assumptions of a one-way shift towards services.
Dev, however, said the state aims to raise the services share of gross state value added (GSVA) to 52 per cent over the next two decades, from about 39 per cent currently, with IT, electronics and fintech expected to play a central role.
Odisha’s Net State Domestic Product rose to an estimated Rs 7.90 lakh crore in 2024-25 from Rs 6.99 lakh crore a year earlier, with growth accelerating to 13.04 per cent, the survey showed. Bank deposits have climbed to Rs 5.83 lakh crore, pointing to expanding financial inclusion and improved fiscal capacity.
Skilling, Talent Retention And Fiscal Headroom
Talent remains a key pillar of Odisha’s strategy. The state produces around two lakh graduates annually, including about one lakh engineers, and has invested heavily in vocational training through ITIs and polytechnics.
Last week, GFTN, a non-profit established by Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), committed to train 7,000 people in the state under a FinTech and InsurTech training programme. Also, ANT International formed a partnership with GFTN to support women entrepreneurs in Odisha in scaling digital commerce and accessing global markets.
“Odisha is witnessing a Black Swan moment, and through the BharatNetra strategy, we are laying the foundation for a long-term shift from a mining economy to a mind economy. This is about building skills, innovation, global mindshare, and GCCs so that jobs are created sustainably, women and youth are meaningfully included in the workforce, and Odisha emerges as a trusted global hub serving Asia and beyond,” said Sopnendu Mohanty, Group CEO, GFTN.
To curb brain drain and attract GCCs, Odisha has also embedded relocation incentives into its IT and GCC policies, covering costs related to equipment, machinery and even senior-level manpower for companies shifting operations from established hubs such as Bengaluru.
“When we give a commitment, we also have the ability to honour it,” Dev said.
That confidence, he says, rests on Odisha’s fiscal position. The state has recorded revenue surpluses for two decades and began the current financial year with a surplus of Rs 31,800 crore. Niti Aayog has ranked Odisha at the top of its fiscal health index among Indian states.
Chief Secretary Anu Garg said Odisha has emerged as a USD 112 billion economy, supported by a working-age population of nearly 69 per cent and expanding infrastructure. The state aims to create 10 million jobs by 2027 and scale to a USD 1.5 trillion economy by 2047.
For Odisha, the transition from a resource-led economy to one anchored in manufacturing, technology and skills is no longer aspirational rhetoric, officials say, but a calculated hedge, which is spread across semiconductors, AI and talent to secure its next phase of growth. |
