The Centre has sanctioned immediate funds of Rs2 crore for each city included in the Smart City Mission in Chhattisgarh.
The amount of Rs2 crore provided for each city is meant for preparation of city-level Smart City plans along with the assistance of technical and hand holding agencies, officials stated.
Raipur and Bilaspur are the two cities included in the Mission among 96 cities included in the country for the project.
At the outset, the Union Ministry of Urban Development has sanctioned a total of Rs194 crore with Rs2 crore for each of the cities listed in the project.
Of the 98 smart city candidate firmed up so far, funds will be sanctioned soon by the Home Ministry to the Union Territories of Delhi and Chandigarh.
Sanction Orders were issued to 38 smart city representatives from 11 states who attended the Regional Workshop in New Delhi on Thursday.
later in the day, funds were transferred electronically to the respective states and Union Territories.
Union Minister of Urban Development and Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation M Venkaiah Naidu in February this year had clearly stated that all cities and towns in the country seeking to participate in these schemes will be profiled based on specific parameters that have a bearing on their ability to address issues of governance reforms, resource mobilisation, execution etc.
The Minister further said that while addressing the issue of geographical spread, only the deserving will be assisted.
It may be recalled that on January 16 this year, Naidu while addressing Consultative Workshop on Urban Governance’ organised for Municipal Commissioners of 130 cities and towns from nine northern states of Delhi, Haryana, Chandigarh, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan in New Delhi had informed that his Ministry is working on a ‘City Challenge’ framework with the objective of selecting right city candidates for participation in schemes like building 100 smart cities and development of 500 cities and towns.
He said that it will not be business as usual in the matter of financing of cities and towns under new urban initiatives and instead, rather it will be based on the ability of urban local bodies to reform urban governance and rise to the new challenges.
Naidu referred to the present appalling state of affairs in urban areas which is marked by weak urban governance structures, uninspiring leadership at the level of both selected and elected urban managers, poor inventory management and resource base, weak urban planning and execution, urban mobility being a nightmarish experience, housing shortage, inadequate water and power supply and despicable management of solid waste and treatment of sewerage etc.
In terms of service parameters, Naidu noted that only 73 litres of water per capita per day is being supplied as against the norm of 135 litres, only 50% of households having water connection, 40% households with toilet facilities, treatment of only 16% of sewerage, collection and disposal of only 23% of solid waste and recycling only 10% of city waste.
As per a detailed note issued by the Union Urban Development Ministry, out of the 9 states under consideration, there is total convergence of housing, AMRUT and Smart City Missions in respect of Chhattisgarh (2 smart and 9 Amrut cities), Jammu & Kashmir (1 and 3), Kerala (1 and 7), MP (7 and 32), Odisha (2 and 9), Rajasthan (4 and 28), Telangana (2 and 11).
This in effect means, 25 of the 26 smart cities in these 9 states are also covered under AMRUT and Housing missions as well and 123 AMRUT cities under housing mission, it stated.
Only in case of Gujarat, there is a degree of deviation. Out of 6 smart city aspirants identified, only Dahod does not figure in the 30 cities and towns so far identified for housing projects. 11 of 30 Amrut cities viz., Bolad, Godhra, Goudal, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Nadiad, Morvi, Palanpur, Porbandar, Veravel and Surendranagar-Dudhrej are still to be included in the housing list.