By Charudutta Panigrahi
Odisha, in 2025, stands at a historic confluence. Its cultural wellspring—Bali Jatra, Kartika Purnima, Boita Bandana—remains alive, not as romantic nostalgia but as the DNA of an emergent maritime vision. The state’s port-led industrial economy and blue tourism drive are not divergences from its past but direct continuations—realising anew what the “Sadhabas” understood: greatness comes from openness, adaptability, and integration of land, sea, and people. On the luminous night of Kartik Purnima, thousands of paper boats carrying flickering lamps are set afloat on rivers across Odisha. The people do not merely celebrate a festival—they invoke a civilisational memory. Bali Jatra commemorates the voyages of Kalinga’s uniquely enterprising seafarers who once sailed to Java, Sumatra, Bali, and beyond.
These journeys carried not only spices and textiles but also ideas, art, and faith, binding Odisha to the wider world. Today, that same spirit of maritime ambition is being reimagined for the 21st century. The Odisha government is positioning the state as the Eastern Maritime Gateway of India, anchoring the nation’s entry into the global blue economy. As a cultural economist, I commend and welcome this vision—but I also ask: how will this translate into real, inclusive, and ecologically balanced outcomes? Odisha’s coastline stretches 575 km, with 14 identified port locations. The state has set an ambitious target: to expand port capacity from 80 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) to 500 MTPA by 2047. Two trans formational projects lie at the heart of this vision: the Rs 21,500 crore Bahuda Port in Ganjam district, with a planned capaci ty of 150 MTPA; and the Rs 24,700 crore Shipbuilding Cluster at the Mahanadi mouth, designed to position Odisha as a global shipbuilding hub.
Together, these projects promise to turn Odisha’s coast into a dynamic hub of trade and industry, creating vast opportunities for investment and employment. If implemented with integrity, they could generate thousands of direct and indirect jobs, especially in logistics, shipbuilding, and allied services. Paradip Port, already one of India’s foremost maritime gateways, is being modernised and developed as a Green Hydrogen Hub. We are aware that non-major ports at Dhamra, Gopalpur, Subarnarekha, and Astaranga are steadily expanding capacity. The state’s maritime ambitions are underpinned by a governance framework: i) Odisha Port Policy 2022 ensures policy stability and investor confi dence; ii) The Odisha Maritime Board (OMB) acts as a single-window authority, streamlining approvals and oversight; iii) Innovative mod els like BOOST (Build, Own, Operate, Share, Transfer) and Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) — the fi rst of its kind among Indian coastal states — aim to create a transparent and in vestment-ready environment. But what is required to make this effective? Governance must move beyond policy documents to field-level coordination, timely clearances, and community engagement. The success of these frameworks will depend on how they empower local stakeholders, protect coastal ecology, and ensure that employment reaches the youth of Odisha—not just the investor’s balance sheet.
Odisha’s vision must extend beyond cargo and commerce. The Bay of Bengal is being reimagined, thankfully so, as a space for tourism, leisure, and recreation: i) Puri, the sacred abode of Lord Jagan nath, is being developed as an international cruise terminal; ii) Chilika Lake, Asia’s larg est brackish water lagoon, is emerging as a premier eco-tourism hub; iii) Invest ments are being encouraged in marinas, luxury cruises, and water sports infrastructure. This is where Odisha’s blue economy could meet its orange economy—a concept I’ve articulated in the past, to promote coastal tourism, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) business, and music concerts. By blending heritage with modern cultural enterprise, Odisha is turning its coastline into a stage for both global investors and cultural connoisseurs. Yet ambition must be tempered with caution. Odisha’s coastline is not just an economic corridor—it is a living ecosystem. Over-commercialisation risks eroding biodiversity, displacing fishing communities, and diminishing the cultural sanctity of the coast. The challenge lies in balance: ensuring that growth remains sustainable, inclusive, and ecologically mindful. The blue economy, if pursued with wisdom, can be more than GDP growth— it can be a philosophy of harmony between ocean and society, between trade winds and cultural currents.
From the historic voyages of Kalinga’s sailors to the shipbuilding hubs of tomorrow, Odisha’s maritime journey is both ancient and futuristic. The Mohan Majhi government’s drive, as expressed, to make Odisha the Eastern Maritime Gateway is not just about ports and tonnage—it is about reclaiming a legacy and projecting it into the 21st century. As the paper boats float on Kartik Purnima, they symbolise not nostalgia but renewal—a reminder that Odisha’s destiny has always been tied to the sea. Today, with bold investments, cultural imagination, and ecological mindfulness, Odisha is poised to turn its coast into a global hub of trade, tourism, and transformation. Yet the lesson of Kartik Purnima is also that prosperity must be cyclic, tuned to seasons and tides, never predatory or static.
Odisha’s path forward must defend the blue against the unchecked “brown”—balancing investment with conservation, commerce with culture, and speed with reflection. As the Odisha Chief Minister noted at India Maritime Week 2025: “What we are building is not just in infrastructure; it is a foundation for a prosperous, resilient, and globally connected future.” We are with the government, as long as we all believe sincerely that Odisha’s future is blue, illuminated by the golden light of Kartik Purnima. And yet, the responsibility does not rest with the state alone. The onus of preserving Odisha’s coastline — its ecology, its heritage, its dignity — lies equally with its citizens and civil society. We must come together under this initiative to give tangible shape to the mission: Vikas Bhi, Virasat Bhi — development with dignity, progress with preservation. Only then will the boats we set afloat carry not just dreams, but direction.
The writer is a thinker and a cultural economist.