The Madhya Pradesh state cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, on Monday announced a series of major financial approvals aimed at boosting infrastructure, education, and social welfare across the state. The decisions, taken during the cabinet meeting, involve significant investments in road connectivity, child development schemes, higher education, and agricultural technology.
Major Boost for Road Connectivity in Western MP
A substantial sum of Rs 2,508.21 crore has been cleared for the land acquisition, upgradation, and construction of the 62.795-kilometre-long Badwah-Dhamnod road. The project will transform the existing two-lane road into a modern four-lane corridor with paved shoulders. Public Works Department Minister Rakesh Singh, briefing the media, stated that the Madhya Pradesh Road Transport Corporation will execute the project under the Hybrid Annuity Model.
This crucial road will serve as a link between two National Highways and improve connectivity to the town of Maheshwar. The extensive project scope includes the construction of ten bypasses, five major bridges, 23 medium bridges, 12 vehicular underpass (VUP) structures, seven major junctions, and 56 medium junctions. Under the financial model, 40% of the funds will be provided upfront by the state government from the State Highway Fund, with the remaining 60% to be allocated from the state budget over the next 15 years.
Cabinet Extends Anganwadi Services and Funds Law University
In a significant move for child and women's welfare, the council of ministers approved the continuation of schemes under the 'Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0' umbrella program for the next five years. This extension aligns with the norms approved by the Central government for the period of the 16th Finance Commission from 2026–27 to 2030–31.
The comprehensive program encompasses anganwadi services, the supplementary nutrition program, pre-school education, construction of anganwadi buildings (including Saksham Anganwadis), Poshan Abhiyaan, the scheme for adolescent girls, and training for anganwadi workers. The scheme is operational through a vast network of 97,882 Anganwadi centres under 453 child development projects in all 55 districts of Madhya Pradesh.
Furthermore, the cabinet sanctioned Rs 197.13 crore for the second-phase building construction of the Madhya Pradesh Dharmashastra National Law University (MPDNLU) in Jabalpur. Minister Singh highlighted that the state has two law universities, in Bhopal and Jabalpur. The new phase will include an administration block, an academic block, official residences for the vice-chancellor and registrar, 12 multi-storey staff quarters, and a boundary wall. The university, which has 1,272 approved seats across BA LLB (Hons), LLB (Hons), and PhD programs, currently has 720 enrolled students.
Advanced Weather Network for Farmers Approved
To aid the agricultural community, the cabinet greenlit the implementation of the Weather Information Network and Data System (WINDS) programme in the state under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. An amount of Rs 434.58 crore has been sanctioned for this five-year initiative.
The programme involves installing automatic weather stations at every tehsil level and automatic rain gauges at each gram panchayat level. Minister Singh explained that the WINDS programme will provide critical weather-based data to facilitate faster implementation of the crop insurance scheme for the benefit of farmers. The high-quality meteorological data collected will also be supplied to the Union government. While the main data centre headquarters will be in New Delhi, the system will be monitored from Bhopal.
These multi-sectoral approvals underscore the state government's focused approach on enhancing physical infrastructure, strengthening social safety nets, and leveraging technology for agricultural risk management, aiming for holistic development in Madhya Pradesh.
