Odisha Moves to Set Up Centre of Excellence for Elderly and Divyangjan Support

Bhubaneswar: In a step towards building inclusive and future-ready social support systems, the Odisha government on Tuesday held a high-level consultation on establishing the Odisha Resource Center for Ageing & Divyangjan (ORCAD), aimed at strengthening services for the elderly and persons with disabilities.

The consultative meeting, organised by the Department of Social Security & Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SS & EPD) in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund, brought together senior officials, representatives from global agencies such as the United Nations Development Programme and UNICEF, along with development partners and subject experts.

Envisioned as a state-level centre of excellence, ORCAD will act as a strategic platform to promote inclusion, accessibility and coordinated service delivery for elderly persons and Divyangjan across Odisha. The proposed centre is expected to enhance inter-departmental convergence, support evidence-based policymaking and strengthen institutional capacities at various administrative levels.

Principal Secretary Suresh Kumar Vashishth emphasised the need for responsive systems to address the evolving and complex needs arising from demographic changes. He reiterated the government’s commitment to ensuring dignity, independence and equal opportunities for all sections of society.

Director Parul Patawari highlighted that ORCAD is being designed as a knowledge and resource hub to drive research, capacity building and policy innovation. She underlined the importance of translating data and insights into scalable interventions that embed inclusion within governance frameworks.

Officials from key departments, including Health & Family Welfare, School & Mass Education, Higher Education, Mission Shakti, Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water, and Women & Child Development, participated in the discussions, contributing inputs to shape the centre’s structure and implementation roadmap.

During the session, Dr Nadeem Noor presented the proposed institutional framework for ORCAD, developed in partnership with the SS & EPD Department.

Chaired by the Principal Secretary of the department, the meeting generated actionable insights to refine the governance structure and operational strategy of the proposed centre.

The ORCAD initiative is seen as a significant step towards strengthening Odisha’s governance ecosystem for inclusive development, marking a shift from welfare-driven approaches to a more rights-based and institutionalised model of inclusion aligned with the state’s long-term development vision.