Blaming the previous Samajwadi Party government for derailing the welfare agenda in the state, Union minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Venkaiah Naidu said that with a ‘dutiful’ Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and a ‘helpful’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the people here could now hope for a ‘beautiful’ state very soon.
Naidu and his ministry officials met with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and UP bureaucrats in lucknow on Friday and handed over three cheques worth Rs 1263 to accelerate the pace of developmental in UP.
The cheques includes Rs 375 crore for Amrut scheme, Rs 482 crores for Smart City scheme and Rs 446 crore for lucknow Metro Rail.
The Union minister claimed, “The Pradhanmantri Awas Scheme along with other Central schemes were not at all implemented by the previous SP government.”
Elaborating the Central schemes and its performance in UP, Naidu said that the much-awaited Real Estate Regulation Act (RERA) has been enforced in the state and within the stipulated three months, the UP government would set up a Regularity Authority providing teeth to the Act.
“We have said that this Act is not strangulation of builders. It is just a regulation to fulfill promises made by them to the purchasers. No builder would be spared if it violates promises made through its brochures and now customers will not fall prey to them,” Naidu stressed.
Talking about the Pradhanmantri Awas Yojgna, the minister said that by 2022, the PM has envisaged house for all and for this, UP will be the most challenging place.
“The past government had failed in demanding houses for the homeless. But this BJP government will do whatever was required,” he said.
Naidu disclosed that while the poor would be given a subsidy of 6.5 per cent in home loan interest, the middle-income group will get 4 per cent subsidy on interest whose annual income is between Rs 6 and 12 lakhs and 3 per cent subsidy whose annual income was between Rs 12 lakh and 18 lakhs.
“We have already directed all banks to provide subsidy to the people under the scheme and even the CM has assured to convene a meeting of banks soon to help the people seeking loan,” Naidu added.
Detailing the Central-sponsored Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme, Naidu said that UP government has started work in the project in a new vigour and projects worth Rs 7000 crores are likely to be completed in the present fiscal.
Under the project, 61 cities of the state would get funds for drinking water, sanitation and solid waste management. He said that UP government has assured to install 13 lakh taps to supply drinking water in these select cities.
Besides, the Union minister said that ESl was setting up lED streetlights in every city so that power consumption of local bodies could be minimised.
Talking about Smart City projects, Naidu said that in the third phase, all remaining cities of UP were likely to be taken up. Presently, there are 13 cities earmarked by the Centre under the project.
Naidu was however critical on the performance of UP in Swacch Bharat Abhiyan, and said that it was only due to denial of power to the local bodies.
“In UP the local bodies are not given power to play their role which led to a worst performance of the cities in the cleanness drive,” he said.
Commenting on the run of the first phase of lucknow Metro Rail, the minister said, “Very soon, people would sit in the lucknow Metro though the past regime had inaugurated it without the infrastructure being completed.”
Naidu also said that a rapid transit transport system between Delhi and Meerut would be constructed at a cost of Rs 32,000 crores where vehicles could move at a speed of 180 kms per hour. Besides, the Centre would be sanctioning over Rs 5000 crore for 29.7 km-long Noida-Greater Noida Metro link.
The Union minister also stressed the need for adopting the formula of ‘ ease of doing business’ in the state for attracting investments.