Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has constituted a three-member committee to probe various aspects of StartUp Odisha.

The panel, led by the Director of Industries, includes the Additional Secretary/ Joint Secretary from the Finance Department and the Additional Secretary/ Joint Secretary from the Public Enterprises Department, according to an official notification issued by the MSME Department.

The committee's task includes evaluating the financial grants provided to startups both within and outside the state, scrutinizing the distribution of funds to private institutions designated as incubators, assessing the output of project management consultants, examining the contribution of NPS and EPF for project officials, and reviewing the use of office space by multinational corporations.

The committee has been asked to submit its report by August 21.

This move follows the Odisha government's decision in July to limit the financial powers of the Startup Odisha authorities after MSME Minister Gokulananda Mallik visited O-Hub, the state’s first centralized incubation center, amid allegations of irregularities and negligence. Subsequently, financial powers were capped at Rs 1 crore for the executive chairman and Rs 10 crore for the board of directors.

Launched in 2016 by the then-Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government, Startup Odisha aims to support 5,000 startups in the state by 2025.