<em>1,333 projects completed or under implementation under Smart Cities Mission</em>
<em>84 per cent of projects under various stages of implementation under AMRUT </em>
<em>Rs. 25,475 crores of Central assistance released to States/UTs</em>
<em>Under DAY- NULM Rs.1907.5 crores released</em>
New Delhi: There has been a significant progress under the various schemes of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. The ministry has been able to achieve substantial milestones in both physical and financial terms in so far as mission objectives or targets are concerned. During the year 2017-18, while the total cumulative grants released was Rs.46,663 crores, Utilization Certificates were due only for the grants released up to March 2016, i.e. for approximately Rs.10,365 crores. The utilization figures, given to the Standing Committee pertained mostly to funds released up to 2015-16 as only this was due in 2017-18. In fact, at the closure of the year 2017-18, as against the due amount of Rs.10,365 crores for utilization certificates (UCs), actual UCs for an amount of Rs.15,403 crores were received in the ministry. This figure also included some UCs which were due in the next financial year i.e. 2018-19.
The figures released by ministry were in the response of the news article published on 12<sup>th</sup> May 2018 in a newspaper which stated that only 22 per cent funds utilized in six Housing Ministry schemes. The ministry said in the statement that this is a misinterpretation of the statistics relating to funds released or utilization regarding schemes or missions being implemented by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, resulting in incorrect inferences. While funds released/utilization is part of the normal government financial procedures to ensure proper accounting systems, it is not a true barometer of the physical progress and speed of the implementation of the mission targets/objectives. Most of the schemes have large capital intensive projects with a completion time range of 1-3 years for the project.
According to the ministry 1,333 projects worth Rs. 50,626 crores have been completed or under implementation under the Smart City Mission and overall projects worth Rs.2,03,979 crores have been identified for all 99 smart cities across the country.
In its report ministry said that out of 99 Smart cities which have been selected so far, 91 of them have already incorporated SPVs (Special Purpose Vehicles). 9 Smart Cities viz. Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Vadodara, Visakhapatnam, Bhopal, Pune, Kakinada, Surat & Nagpur have already established Integrated City Command and Control Centres (ICCC). Work is under progress on 14 more and 32 are under tendering stage .
The ministry also informed that Smart Road projects have been completed in 4 cities worth Rs.228 crores and are under implementation/tendering stage in 40 cities worth Rs. 5,123 crores. Smart Solar projects in 6 cities have been completed, while projects in 49 cities are under implementation, while, Smart Water projects have been completed in 6 cities while projects are under implementation in 43 cities. Similarly, Smart Waste Water projects in 46 cities have been completed or under implementation. Public Private Partnership projects worth Rs.734 crores have been completed in 13 cities while projects worth Rs. 7,753 crores are under implementation in 52 cities. Apart from this, other impactful projects like heritage conservation, water front development, public space development etc. have been completed in 13 cities worth Rs.107 crores and projects worth Rs. 5,865 crores are under implementation/tendering.
The selection of smart cities was done in various stages with the last 9 cities been selected in Jan 2018. It is pertinent to mention that it normally takes around 12 to 18 months after selection of a city as Smart City to set up a Special Purpose Vehicle, appointment of a Project Management Consultant, prepare detailed project reports and award the work after tender. The timeline set for the completion of smart city projects are that the cities selected in round 1 will be completed by 2020-21, cities selected in round 2 and 3 by 2021-22 and cities selected in round 4 by 2022-23
Under the AMRUT scheme, out of State Annual Action Plan(SAAP) size of Rs.77,640 crores, projects worth Rs.65,075 crores (84%) are under various stages of implementation including projects tendered and where DPRs have been approved. More than 22 crores urban population will benefit from this mission. Total of Rs. 11,945 crores has been released so far. Close to 400 projects worth Rs.325 crores have already been completed and for 2,188 projects worth Rs.40,074 crores, contracts have been awarded and are at various stages of implementation. Further, 895 projects costing Rs.13,586 crores are under tendering and for 729 projects costing Rs.10,824 crores DPRs have been approved. Further, 8.58 lakhwater tap connections have been provided so far under the Mission and by convergence of other schemes. By the end of the Mission, i.e. June 2020, nearly 1.4 crore water taps will be provided across the country. 37 lakh street lights have been replaced with energy efficient LED lights. Around 322 green spaces and parks projects have been completed under the Mission. A Single window clearance system has been implemented in Delhi and Mumbai for construction permits, where only 8 procedures and less than 60 days are required for all approvals. Online Building Permission Systems(OBPS) is operational in 370Mission cities and is under various stages of implementation in remaining cities.
Apart from Smart City and AMRUT schemes, PMAY(U) scheme has also progressed significantly. Total of Rs. 24,475crores has been released to the States under the scheme. So far, 45.86 lakh houses have been sanctioned under the scheme; out of these 23.43 lakh houses have been grounded and 7.02 lakh houses have been completed so far (including incomplete houses of earlier scheme).
The DAY – NULM scheme has also picked up as under the mission Rs.1907.5 crores have been released so far. The Mission has been extended to all the statutory towns. Since the beginning of the mission, employment has been generated for 6,36,956 beneficiaries. Around 11 lakh urban poor have been imparted skill training to improve their employability. A total of 2,81,197 Self-Help Groups have been formed and 1,94,879 SHGs have been assisted with Revolving Fund while 3,82,746 SHGs have been disbursed loans under SHG Bank Linkage Programme. Street Vendor Survey has been completed in 2,178 towns and 16,76,403 street vendors have been identified and 7,92,286 ID cards issued. 1,565 shelters for urban homeless have been sanctioned and 961 shelters made operational.
Under the HRIDAY scheme, City HRIDAY Plans (CHPs) for 12 cities have been approved. 66 DPRs amounting to Rs. 421.47 crores have been approved and Rs. 261.31 crores have been released to 12 cities for implementation of scheme. Total expenditure under the scheme so far is Rs.209.5 crores.58 projects are under implementation at various stages. All works will be completed by September 2018.
