• Role of J-PAL South Asia: To work with departments to identify priority policy challenges, generate rigorous research-based evidence, and turn findings into actionable policy recommendations.
• Existing partnership: J-PAL has worked with Odisha since 2006 in early childhood education, foundational literacy and numeracy, governance, sanitation, agriculture and gender equality.
• Aim: Chief Secretary Garg said the partnership will bring global research evidence into policy priorities, adapt promising approaches to local needs and test data-driven solutions before scaling them up.

• J-PAL: A global research centre founded in 2003 at MIT by Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Sendhil Mullainathan. It promotes randomised controlled trials (RCTs) to test what works in reducing poverty. Banerjee, Duflo and Michael Kremer won the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics for this experimental approach.
• Evidence-based policymaking: Using data and rigorous evaluation to design and scale policies, as in pilot-then-scale approaches.
• Foundational literacy and numeracy: NIPUN Bharat Mission (2021), under the National Education Policy 2020, aims for every child to attain basic reading and numeracy skills by Grade 3.
• Odisha Vision 2036: The state completes 100 years of statehood in 2036, since it was constituted as a separate province in 1936. Vision 2047 aligns with the national Viksit Bharat goal.
• Planning and Convergence Department: Coordinates the state’s planning and scheme convergence.

Evidence-based policymaking, randomised controlled trials, foundational literacy and numeracy (NIPUN Bharat Mission, NEP 2020) and Odisha Vision 2036 and 2047 are useful themes for OPSC Prelims (Odisha Current Events, Governance) and OPSC Mains GS Paper II (Governance, Policy Design and Government Interventions).

For structured notes on Odisha-specific current affairs, aspirants preparing in Bhubaneswar can join the OPSC Foundation Batch at Strive Edge IAS — recognized as one of the best OPSC OAS coaching institutes in Bhubaneswar.