Delay clouds Mahanadi riverfront project in Sambalpur; officials claim progress underway

SAMBALPUR: Touted as a game-changer for Sambalpur’s tourism landscape, the ambitious Mahanadi Riverfront Development Project seems to have been stuck in a limbo. Work on the riverfront development is yet to start though more than six months have passed since Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced the project and promised to give a complete facelift to the historic Ayodhya Sarovar. In September last year, the CM had announced that Ayodhya Sarovar would be restored and developed along the lines of Gujarat’s Sabarmati Lakefront, complete with a ropeway, boating facilities, landscaped parks and other tourist-centric amenities.

The project was proposed by Sambalpur MP and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. In a letter to the chief minister in July 2024, Pradhan had emphasised the importance of preserving Sambalpur’s spiritual heritage while promoting tourism for economic growth. He had proposed to develop the old Ayodhya Sarovar, an artificial lake created from the water of Mahanadi river near Sambalpur town, under the riverfront development project.



Subsequently, the project received a budgetary allocation of Rs 50 crore for riverfront development in both Sambalpur and Cuttack. The Sambalpur project was proposed to be executed in two phases. Officials from the departments concerned even visited the site for an initial survey and evaluation.

However, no visible progress has been made on the project since then. Sources said a tentative layout design of the Cuttack project has surfaced online. However, there has been no official confirmation or update regarding the Sambalpur project.

Lack of any effective communication has sparked speculation about the project’s fate even as Sambalpur is witnessing a steady increase in tourist footfall thanks to the redevelopment of Samaleswari temple and other related infrastructure projects. However, Sambalpur collector Siddheswar Baliram Bondar claimed the project is ‘very much in progress’. He said, “The riverfront development project at Ayodhya Sarovar is being actively worked on.

Further steps in this direction will be taken soon.”.