Now, AMRUT mustn’t go the JNNURM way
It is good that the Union Government, in a bid to fast-track developmental works under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) plan, has given the go-ahead for plans scheduled for the remaining three years in one go. The five-year AMRUT scheme was launched by the Prime Minister in June 2015, with an aim to improve the quality of life, especially of the poor and the disadvantaged, by providing basic facilities to households and enhancing infrastructural facilities in cities by ensuring water supply and improved sewage and drainage systems.
Indeed, the Government's plan to provide funds well in advance for the next three years, instead of giving it on an yearly basis, will help the States plan long-term projects beforehand, in a comprehensive way, and lead to timely execution of urban developmental schemes. It is also encouraging that the Government has laid down a criterion for the release of funds. Instead of brazenly allocating funds, it will first evaluate the report cards of the States (that are included in this plan). Funds will be released to only those States which have passed the Government's test, wherein progress and implementation of past projects, approved last year and this year, will be looked upon. For this, the Government has set up three scrutiny levels — a State-level technical committee, a State-level empowered body chaired by the Chief Secretary, and an apex panel in the Ministry of Urban Development.
Out of a total of 18 States registered under this scheme, the Ministry has given approval to 14 States to take their projects further. The selection criterion of the Government is welcome in the sense that it had been a common practice for States to not fully utilise their funds and eagerly wait for the following year's allocation. For example, this year, Jammu & Kashmir utilised only eight per cent of the Rs177 crore granted to it. Thus, while the present mode of allocation will undoubtedly help the States fast-track their projects in a holistic manner, the far more important issue remains the gross under-utilisation of funds. If this issue remains unaddressed, the Government's three-year approval of funds will be meaningless. Both the States and the Union Government must pull up their socks to roll out a supervisory mechanism for a more optimum utilisation of funds.
All stakeholders must be given a clearer picture about the Government's implementation programmes and also about urban governance reforms. Given the wide scope of this scheme — in changing the face of urban India, in overcoming the smart city challenge, and also in having enormous potential for the generation of employment — strenuous efforts must be made to ensure that the scheme does not become a failure like the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission of the UPA Government, on account of poor funds allocation, shoddy supervision and ineffective implementation.