Bhubaneswar: Six southern Odisha districts are set to get a new platform for rural development under a five-year partnership between the state government and SELCO Foundation, with proposed SEVA Hubs planned to connect communities with technology, finance, skills and government programmes.
The initiative will cover Kalahandi, Rayagada, Gajapati, Koraput, Nabarangpur and Malkangiri in its initial phase. The proposed SEVA Hubs — Centres for Expertise and Enablers for Rural Transformation — are expected to work as locally anchored platforms for identifying community needs and supporting projects suited to local conditions.
The hubs will assist in programme design, convergence of government schemes, capacity building and access to technology and finance. They will also help provide implementation support and identify successful initiatives that can be expanded to other areas.
The broader partnership will focus on sustainable livelihoods, local economic development, healthcare and nutrition, clean energy and climate-resilient development. Tribal knowledge and local innovation will also form part of the collaboration, along with skill development and entrepreneurship.
Farmers, women, SHGs, FPOs, youth, artisans, tribal communities, persons with disabilities and rural micro-entrepreneurs will be among those targeted. The programme will seek to improve access to productive-use technologies, finance, government schemes, markets and value-addition opportunities.
The Odisha government and SELCO Foundation signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Monday to formalise the partnership. The agreement was signed in the presence of Chief Secretary Anu Garg by Commissioner-cum-Secretary of the Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Department Girish S.N. and SELCO Foundation Chief Finance Officer V.K. Joby.
Rather than creating a separate programme structure for every intervention, the partnership will seek to strengthen existing government schemes through technical expertise, innovation, technology and implementation support. Individual projects will be developed separately according to the requirements identified by districts and communities.
The five-year agreement will involve coordination among the Panchayati Raj, Health and other relevant departments, along with district administrations. The state government has decided to monitor programmes under the Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Department on a monthly basis, while Chief Secretary-level reviews will be conducted twice a year.
Garg said prosperity, well-being and equity were the three pillars of Odisha’s vision for Viksit Odisha 2036 and Viksit Bharat 2047. She stressed that improving human resources, ensuring equal opportunities and promoting inclusive development were essential to achieving these goals.
She said the partnership could accelerate inclusive and sustainable development in southern Odisha and directed officials to ensure regular monitoring of its implementation.
Former NITI Aayog CEO B.V.R. Subrahmanyam and SELCO Foundation founder Harish Hande joined the meeting virtually.
