State Urban Development Minister CP Singh on Monday asked his department officials to develop a system of transparency and efficiency for proper utilization of Government funds. The Minister said that as Jharkhand is a youth State, it is the duty of Government to upgrade infrastructure facilities which requires funds, the Government has taken loan from World Bank and it is important that there is proper utilization of funds. The Minister made the observation at the one-day workshop organised by Jharkhand Municipal Development Project (JMDP), State Urban Development Authority and World Bank.
The Minister said, “It is duty of concerned department that there is proper utilization of funds so that urban population gets better civic amenities with new infrastructure facilities. It is duty of company officials that they visit the site before making plans. The State requires Smart roads, but is equally important that there should be regular monitoring of these Smart roads, so as they assess their quality.”
Department secretary, Ajay Kumar Singh said that Jharkhand Urban Infrastructure Development Company (JUIDCO) is working on big projects, but still the State lags behind in infrastructure development as compared to other developed States. Singh said, “For infrastructure development of roads, sewerage/drainage and drinking water around Rs 1300 crores is required. The department does not have such huge budget as the State dependence on centre is limited. To meet these requirements the Government has no other alternative but to depend on World Bank and other agencies such as Asian Development Bank for loans.”
The secretary claimed that as the World Bank has the experiences of working in more than 100 countries, State will gain from this. The secretary also urged the municipal bodies to become self reliant in funds so that they don’t have to depend upon State Government for small projects.
Sources said that out of Rs 1470 crore project, the State Government share is 30 per cent while the World Bank will bear the rest. In the said project, drinking water project worth Rs 72 crore at Khuti is executed, similarly two smart roads at Dhanbad districts will be constructed. Similarly, the project will also cover drinking water supply at Jhumri Telaiya, Singhbhum and Bishrampur town.
World Bank representative, Vasudha Thawkar who too was present on the occasion said that World Bank not only provides loan to government and agencies, but it also works in training and capacity building of officials. Infra and Public Finance MD, Anand Mahadevan said that civic bodies can develop only if they are financially self reliant. The workshop was attended by representatives from different banks, JUIDCO and others.