Massive urban infra plan for betterment of poor

• Chief Secretary holds meeting with department officials
• Proposal to invest Rs 30,695 crore in six years
• Finds five major challenges
• Focus on energy efficiency measures

Hyderabad: The State government is contemplating to take up a massive Urban Infrastructure Development (UID) programme for improving the living standards of low income groups and their economic development.

Informing that the State urban population was projected to increase to 4.55 crore by 2030 constituting 46 per cent of the total population, Chief Secretary and SECM chairman PK Mohanty said that the government had prepared detailed estimates of required investment in eight sectors i.e. water supply, sewerage, solid waste management, storm water drains, urban roads, urban transportation, traffic support infrastructure and street lighting. Based on the estimates made by the high power expert committee on urban infrastructure services, the per capita investment required in the State in the next 6 years (2014-2020) is Rs.10,846/- (on each individual) amounting to Rs.30,695 Crore..

The Chief Secretary disclosed the above details in an interaction with top officials of Energy dept and MA&UD including M Sahoo, SK Joshi, Suresh Chanda, Munindra, Janardhan Reddy here.

He found five major challenges in managing urbanization - significant rise in investments for urban infrastructure and services; strengthening the framework for governance and financing; slum development and urban poverty alleviation; urban housing and comprehensive capacity building programme at all levels of government.

Further, Mohanty said focus would also be given on energy efficiency measures to further improve power supply situation in urban areas. The government had initiated Restructured Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme (R-APDRP) with an investment of Rs 1,880 crore for development of IT and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), System improvement works like construction of substations and lines, enhancement of power transformers in the next 4 years.

Mohanty's book is a 'Bible on urbanisation'

PM congratulates CS for highlighting urban issues and reforms

The book titled ‘Urbanisation in India - Challenges, Opportunities and the Way Forward’ written by State Chief Secretary PK Mohanty in association with Isher Judge Ahluwalia and Ravi Kanbur, has been described by a senior official of Municipal Administration and Urban Development as a ‘Bible on Urbanisation’.

The book is getting a positive response from all quarters. Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh congratulated Mohanty for highlighting reforms and interventions through his book, to counter the challenges of urbanisation and key actions to be initiated by the government, bureaucrats, financial institutions and urban planners. He had suggested to the Chief Secretary, who has a decade-long experience in urban administration and also served in Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), to give a special report on the impact of rapid urbanization on the common man for incorporating the same in the report being prepared by the Centre. Mohanty said there was an immediate need to adopt the key recommendations for making cities and towns socially equitable, economically viable, and environmentally sustainable.