Odisha Hosts Workshop to Develop State’s Artificial Intelligence Strategy

By Radhika Mishra

Bhubaneswar, Oct. 19: The Government of Odisha has taken a significant step towards establishing a comprehensive Artificial Intelligence (AI) strategy by organizing the ‘Brainstorming Workshop on AI Strategy for Odisha.’ Held at the Odisha State Convention Centre, Lok Seva Bhavan, the event brought together key figures from the government, academia, industry, and international organizations to discuss how AI can contribute to the state’s growth.

The workshop, organized by the Electronics and IT Department, is part of Odisha’s efforts to create a thriving AI ecosystem. The state aims to align its AI initiatives with the national India AI Mission, which has made AI a priority, allocating over INR 10,000 crores for research, innovation, and AI adoption across industries.

Development Commissioner-cum-Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Smt. Anu Garg highlighted the state’s growing adoption of AI across sectors and its potential to accelerate development. However, she emphasized the importance of ensuring that AI benefits marginalized communities. “This workshop will help us learn from global best practices and apply them in Odisha,” she said.

Principal Secretary of the Electronics and IT Department, Shri Vishal Dev, outlined the state’s ambitions to foster an AI-friendly environment that promotes collaboration between academia, government, and industry. “We are working to develop Odisha’s AI Strategy and AI Policy, focusing on contributing to India’s compute capacity, indigenous foundational models, and local AI startups,” Dev stated.

Senior officials who also made valuable presentations at the event included Principal Secretary of Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Department Shri Sushil Kumar Lohani, Principal Secretary of Commerce and Transport Smt. Usha Padhee, Principal Secretary of Women and Child Development Smt. Shubha Sarma, Principal Secretary of Skill Development and Technical Education Shri NBS Rajput, Principal Secretary of Information and Public Relations Shri Sanjay Singh, and Secretary of Higher Education Shri Aravind Agarwal.

Representatives from organizations such as the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the University of California-Berkeley also participated. Their presentations covered a broad range of themes, including AI use cases in sectors like healthcare, agriculture, and disaster management, the need for local compute capacity, ethical frameworks, and financing AI startups.

A panel discussion featuring academics from IIT Bhubaneswar, IIIT Bhubaneswar, BPUT, and VSSUT, along with industry leaders from Accenture, TCS, Infosys, IBM, and NASSCOM, further enriched the dialogue. The panelists discussed ongoing AI research at Odisha’s universities, AI-related academic programs, and the products and services being developed by local industries.

The workshop marks an important milestone in Odisha’s journey towards creating an inclusive and action-oriented AI strategy. By building on these insights, the state hopes to align with national goals and ensure AI’s role in fostering sustainable growth across all sectors.