# Odisha cabinet clears Rs 4,708-crore pumped storage project, free Wi-Fi 2026-11-09T21:41:19+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets The Odisha cabinet on Monday, 9 November 2026, approved 13 proposals including a Rs 4,708.64-crore, 600 MW Upper Indravati Pumped Storage Project at Ranibahal in Kalahandi district, said Chief Secretary Anu Garg. Megha Engineering & Infrastructures Ltd has been selected as developer, with commissioning targeted for the 2030-31 financial year. The facility will generate around 1,040 million units of peak electricity annually and serve as a grid-scale energy storage system. The cabinet also cleared the ‘Odisha Shikshanet’ scheme, with a Rs 393.62-crore outlay over three years from 2026-27, to provide free, high-speed Wi-Fi with a 1 GB daily data limit in 601 government and aided colleges, benefiting over 6 lakh students and faculty. Other decisions included the Paddy Procurement Policy for the 2026-27 Kharif Marketing Season, under which at least 78 lakh metric tonnes will be bought from farmers at Rs 3,100 per quintal with payment within 24 to 48 hours, and a one-year extension for around 5,000 private fair price shop dealers until 30 September 2027. Unlimited attempts for state civil services candidates until the upper age limit were also approved, along with three water resources proposals worth Rs 450 crore for in-stream storage and mega lift irrigation projects. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Both Hindustan Times and Sambad English reported the cabinet decisions as neutral, straight news, with Hindustan Times leading on the pumped storage project and Sambad English leading on the free Wi-Fi scheme. Neither outlet offered critical framing, omitted significant proposals, or editorialised. The coverage is uniform across all approvals, with each source merely emphasising the proposal its headline names. A reader can rely on the combined list: 13 proposals including the Rs 4,708-crore storage project, the Rs 393-crore Shikshanet scheme, paddy procurement at Rs 3,100 per quintal, and unlimited civil service attempts. No next step was named beyond the 2030-31 commissioning target for the storage project and the three-year rollout of the Wi-Fi scheme from 2026-27. ## Coverage Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral - hindustantimes.com (neutral report) Straight listing of 13 cabinet approvals, led by pumped storage project - sambadenglish.com (neutral report) Straight reporting on free Wi-Fi scheme with technical details This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Tags: Megha Engineering & Infrastructures Ltd, Mohan Charan Majhi, Odisha Cabinet, Odisha Shikshanet, Upper Indravati Pumped Storage Project Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/odisha-cabinet-clears-rs-4708-crore-pumped-storage-project-free-wi-fi/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/odisha-cabinet-clears-rs-4708-crore-pumped-storage-project-free-wi-fi/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/