19th Urban Mobility India Conference Opens in Bhubaneswar

Union Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Shri Tokhan Sahu inaugurated the 19th Urban Mobility India (UMI) Conference and Exhibition 2026 at Bhubaneswar in Odisha on 23 October 2026. The two-day conference runs on 23 and 24 October 2026 at Hotel Mayfair Sanctuary and is organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs through the Institute of Urban Transport (India), with support from the Government of Odisha. It is being held in Bhubaneswar for the first time.

Theme and scale

The theme this year is 'Urban Accessibility and Liveability in Digital Age'. Around 1,500 delegates from India and abroad are expected, and 28 exhibitors are showing technologies and best practices in urban transport at the accompanying exhibition. The conference has been an annual event of the ministry under the National Urban Transport Policy, 2006, and has run since its inception in 2008.

Metro figures quoted at the opening

Shri Sahu said progress in urban development should be measured by how safely and independently citizens can travel, including women, children, senior citizens and persons with disabilities. He listed the National Common Mobility Card, QR-based ticketing and PM e-Bus Sewa as steps making public transport more accessible, and praised Odisha's Ama Bus service as an example of technology-enabled transport.

Odisha's part

Dr. Krushna Chandra Mahapatra, Odisha's Minister for Housing and Urban Development, spoke of the state's Ama Bus and Ama E-Ride services. Chief Secretary Smt. Anu Garg said Odisha follows an 8S approach to urban mobility and that Capital Region Urban Transport (CRUT) runs about 800 buses in eight cities with digital ticketing and more women drivers.

Sessions, papers and what follows

Day one had a conclave session on liveability and accessibility, a technical session on data governance and intelligent transport, three round tables, on gender-responsive urban planning, on modernising bus systems through special purpose vehicles and PM e-Bus Sewa, and on low emission zones for cleaner air, and a special session on comprehensive regional mobility planning. A research symposium has selected 46 research papers, of which 20 will be presented and 26 shown as posters, with cash awards of Rs 25,000 each for the three best papers. The valedictory session on 24 October will see Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs and Power Shri Manohar Lal present the awards for Excellence and Best Practice Projects in Urban Transport. The National Urban Conclave 2026 follows at the same venue on 24 and 25 October 2026.