Chief Minister Harish Rawat has directed the Mussoorie-Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA) to begin the river front development project soon for the beautification of the Rispana and Bindal rivers along with other related developmental works.
Chairing a review meeting of the authority late on Wednesday evening, the Chief Minister directed officials to take measures for rejuvenation of these two rivers.
Addressing the officials, Rawat said the MDDA should development some locations in the town for public use where parks for cycling, the elderly and children are facilitated.
The plan for beautification of the Clock Tower should be prepared on priority basis while other prominent intersections should also be beautified. Regarding the river front development plan, Rawat said its execution should be paced up. Apart from relocating those affected by this project, some small shops should also be constructed and allocated first to the project affected people.
Housing projects should be started in nearby areas of the city with low cost units for Middle Income Group (MIG), lower Income Group (lIG) and Economically Weaker Section (EWS).
Stating that the MDDA will be provided seed capital for purchasing land, Rawat said that MDDA and Special Area Development Authority (SADA) should jointly create land bank. Pointing at the increasing traffic load in the city, the Chief Minister asked officials to make a concrete work plan for alternatives. MDDA officials informed the Chief Minister that a light rail transit (lRT) plan was being prepared by the authority with survey work having been completed for this.
A pilot project would be undertaken on the Dehradun-Doiwala-Rishikesh route for this. In addition to this a Personalised Rapid Transit System (PRTS) work plan has also been prepared for Dehradun. The PRTS is planned to be operated between Rajpur Road and the ISBT. The CM said that work on projects should be started soon to provide better facilities to the public.
In view of crowding, focus should be laid on multilevel parking facilities and beautification of the city. In addition to ensuring concrete solutions to tackle land encroachment, the vacant lands and lands on the riverbanks should be fenced. Rawat also directed officials to facilitate drainage system and repair the road at ISBT in addition to multi-storied parking in Mussoorie. The CM directed the Urban Development secretary to identify towns for the planned development of 100 small towns in Uttarakhand.
MDDA vice chairman R Meenakshi Sundaram informed that an Rs 75 crore proposal had been submitted to the State administration for the first stage of the river front development project. Proposals for housing projects have also been prepared for Transport Nagar and Amwala Tarla for MIG, lIG and EWS flats. The price of one EWS unit has been set at Rs5 lakh, he added.