The Government on Monday allocated about Rs 7,296 crore for two Central schemes — Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and ‘Smart Cities’ Mission.
The general Budget 2016-17 earmarked an amount of Rs 3,205 crore for the development of 100 smart cities across the country by 2020, while nearly Rs 4,091 crore for AMRUT.
Overall, the Budget allocation (Plan) for 2016-17 for Ministry of Urban Development has been increased by 39.18 per cent over that of Revised Estimates for 2015-16.
The focus of the Smart Cities mission, a flagship programme of the Modi Government, includes provision of clean water, setting up of sanitation and solid waste management systems, efficient mobility and public transportation and affordable housing.
As regards AMRUT, it was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2015 with the mission of providing basic services, including water supply, sewerage, urban transport and building of amenities in cities to improve quality of life.
However, Budget allocation (Plan) for Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA) for 2016-17 has come down by 4 per cent from that of Budget Estimate for 2015-16 and has been increased by 277 per cent over that of Revised Estimates of 2015-16.