THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU
RAYAGADA, DECEMBER 30, 2025
Yamini Sarangi, Secretary, Rural Development Department, Government of Odisha, on Monday visited the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects being implemented by Utkal Alumina International Limited (UAIL), a subsidiary of Hindalco Industries Ltd. of the Aditya Birla Group, at Doraguda under the Tikiri block of Rayagada district. She was accompanied by the District Collector of Rayagada, Ashutosh Kulkarni.
During the visit, the Secretary reviewed two key CSR initiatives of UAIL at Bilamal village — a solar-powered cold storage facility and a roasted millet processing unit — aimed at strengthening rural livelihoods through sustainable and community-focused interventions. She appreciated the company for undertaking people-centric and environmentally sustainable development initiatives in rural and remote areas of the district.
The solar-powered cold storage facility has emerged as a vital support system for around 180 local farmers, enabling them to store vegetables for extended periods. This has helped farmers from the remote region reduce post-harvest losses, access external markets and secure better prices for their produce. Commending the initiative, Sarangi congratulated UAIL and suggested that such projects be further expanded to villages surrounding the plant in the coming days.
At the roasted millet processing unit, Sarangi expressed happiness on seeing a range of value-added products such as biscuits and cookies made from millets (mandia). She lauded the CSR team for introducing innovative livelihood-enhancement initiatives tailored to the needs of the tribal-dominated Rayagada district, while also promoting nutritional security and local entrepreneurship.
UAIL’s CSR Head Lopamudra Mishra, Head–Human Resources Narayan Mitra, CSR officials Kartikeswar Sahu and Soumyaranjan Swain, along with other company representatives, were present during the visit.
