HUBBALLI: Urban Development Minister B A Basavaraj has said that Rs 1,000 crore will be released for the development of roads in the twin cities that are not under CRF.
The chief minister has accepted a proposal on the matter submitted by the representatives, district administration and Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation, he added.
The minister, speaking in the city, assured that the Corporation will get Rs 229 crore from various projects, the fund will be utilised for road development. Tender will be called under the urban development project and work will be started soon. All roads and drains will be repaired by the coming summer.
He added that Rs 77 crore will be used to install 64,000 LED lights in the Corporation limits under PPP. The companies that handled the maintenance of streetlights in the twin cities failed to do a proper job, this time, the work has been given to a different company, and 98% of the problems with streetlights have been solved.
A proposal has been submitted to the government for Rs 51 crore to build a solid waste management plant outside the city. The funds will be released in the next budget, said the minister.
Smart City work
Basavaraj said that the Smart City works under progress will be completed within five to six months. There is still a year and a half for the completion of the works. The projects will be completed ensuring that there is no loss of funds or compromise in quality.
Property, water and stall taxes and bills should be duly collected from the citizens and the money will be used for development works. Corporation officers who neglect the work will have to face the law, Basavaraj warned, adding that the citizens should be provided a system to easily clear their dues and that all dues, including pending, should be collected by March-end.
Referring to beautification of the cities, the minister said that the Gadag, Kusgal, PB and Gokul Roads should be cleaned and the encroachments and all sorts of waste should be cleared in various parts of the cities. A cleanliness campaign should be taken up in all 67 wards of the twin cities. He again warned that negligent officers will have to face action.
When legislator Arvind Bellad spoke about inappropriate use of garbage tippers, Basavaraj said that the tippers should be cleared regularly. Now too, he gave a warning to the officers in-charge of waste collection work against negligence.
Next, he told the water and sewage department officers that representatives had complained about drains and water treatment plants not working properly and to solve the problems.
A drinking water supply project to the twin cities and also Kalburgi and Belagavi will be taken up with the Rs 2,800 crore received from the World Bank.
For pension, Rs 52 crore has been disbursed and the rest of the funds will be given to the Corporation soon, the minister promised.
Speaking about akrama-sakrama, Basavaraj said that a cabinet sub-committee led by Rural Development Minister K S Eshwarappa had been formed to discuss the pros and cons of the matter and submit a report to the government.
Basic Infrastructure Development and finance society president and legislator Shankar Patil Munenakoppa, Basavaraj Horatti, Arvind Bellad, Shrinivas Mane, HUDA President Nagesh Kalburagi, Deputy Commissioner Nitesh Patil, Corporation Commissioner Dr Suresh Itnala, KUIDFC Managing Director Dr M T Reju, Smart City Manager Shakeel Ahmed, HUDA Commissioner Vinayak Palanak and other senior officers attended the meetings.
There must be some platform to hold politicians or local muncipal corporation accountable. Thousands of crores of funds comes in but the development is very slow in dharwad. Dharwad now is known for its worst roads in Karnataka. The 1km stretch of road beside my home which was under tender sure project is still not complete even after 4yrs. Roads are filled with potholes & the environment is totally dusty with heavy vehicles passing continuously. What smart city are u trying to build. The funds coming in is going to pockets of politicians & local authorities.