Odisha is breathing new life into two long-closed sugar mills — one in Bolangir and the other in Badamba (Cuttack) — with support from India Potash Limited (IPL). These mills have been inactive for over a decade but will now be transformed into modern agro-industrial hubs.
IPL, best known as India’s top potash importer, has received the state government’s go-ahead in principle to lead the revival. The company has been asked to submit a detailed project report (DPR) outlining how they plan to rebuild and run the units. They’re also expected to draw on their successful experience with similar projects in Gujarat.
For the revival to work, IPL has requested 40–50 acres of land for each mill. They also propose setting up sugarcane farming across 15,000 hectares (6,000 of which will serve the Bolangir plant). This will support both sugar production and related agro-processing operations.
To make this happen, the Odisha government is gearing up to boost sugarcane farming from the 2025–26 financial year, aiming to increase farmland and get more farmers involved.
