Cuttack: Even in death, former chief minister Biju Patnaik gets work done in the state he served for so long.

The works department's roads and buildings division is hurrying through work on the Rs 1.65-crore four-lane project before the scheduled opening of a museum at the late leader's ancestral home.

The government took up the project to widen the stretch - that passes through Anand Bhavan, the leader's ancestral home - leading to Ring Road along the Mahanadi river from Biju Patnaik Chhak.

Cuttack roads and buildings division executive engineer M.R. Khan on Saturday said the work was being expedited to complete it before March 15.

"We are trying to get the road ready before the date for inauguration of the museum," Khan said.

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik announced that President Ram Nath Kovind would inaugurate the museum, displaying relics associated with Biju Patnaik, in March.

The heritage building, which has been restored and developed into a museum-cum-learning centre under an integral development plan by the state for nearly Rs 1 crore, will be thrown open to the public after inauguration.

The existing roads under the project are being expanded to maintain the 7.5m width on both sides of the median.

It was initially undertaken in 2016 with a deadline of May 2017.

However, the expansion work at Biju Patnaik Chhak was taken up barely a fortnight ago after being delayed by encroachments and unauthorised constructions.

The Cuttack roads and buildings division, with help from the district administration, cleared all unauthorised constructions that had come up at Biju Patnaik Chhak on February 16 to make room for the project.