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Financial Management

Rs.3.38-cr. deficit budget presented for Tirunelveli

Thursday, 28 March 2013 04:21 administrator
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The Hindu                      28.03.2013

Rs.3.38-cr. deficit budget presented for Tirunelveli

Special Correspondent 

A slew of measures for corporation schoolchildren.

Presenting the Corporation’s Rs.3.38-crore deficit budget for 2013 – 2014 on Wednesday, Mayor Vijila Sathyananth announced a slew of measures for the benefit of children studying in the schools being administered by the urban local body.

As per the announcements made by Ms. Vijila, all Corporation Higher Secondary Schools will get smart classrooms and napkin vending machines, computers with projectors and medical monitoring system for the corporation schoolchildren. She earmarked Rs. 75 lakh for the purchase of computers with projectors.

She said the Kallanai Corporation Higher Secondary School, Corporation Higher Secondary School at Meenakshipuram, Rani Anna Corporation Higher Secondary School at Pettai and Quaid-E-Millath Corporation Higher Secondary School at Melapalayam would get the smart classrooms on an outlay of Rs.1.25 crore.

Napkin-vending machines would be installed at the cost of Rs.6 lakh during this fiscal and incinerators established in schools. Ms. Vijila introduced ‘Amma Medical Monitoring Activities (AMMA)’ for schoolchildren, who would be screened every month by the City Health Officer and appropriate medical assistance rendered based on the findings and annual dental and eye camps would be conducted in all Corporation schools.

Each student studying in the Corporation school would be insured as the urban civic body would pay the annual premium of Rs. 25 per student. A full-fledged counselling centre would be established in every Corporation school.

An auditorium on an outlay of Rs. 1 crore would be established at Kallanai Corporation Higher Secondary School.

Apart from this, steps would be taken to bring drinking water to the Corporation from Ariyanayagipuram on an outlay of Rs. 290 crore and the areas yet to be covered by the underground drainage scheme would get the sewerage scheme under the National River Water Conservation Programme.

New administrative buildings for Melapalayam and Thatchanallur Zones, tiled pedestrians’ path between Sulochana Mudaliar Bridge to Murugankurichi Signal, apartments for homeless conservancy workers of Tirunelveli Corporation, a facelift to the Tirunelveli Junction, Vaeinthaankulam and Palayamkottai bus-stands with additional facilities, night shelter at Sindupoondurai for the homeless and the elderly were some of the new facilities the Corporation plans to pursue during this financial year.

LED, CFL facility

Ms. Vijila announced that the existing streetlights would be replaced by the LED and CFL bulbs under the ongoing ‘Energy Efficiency Project’.

"This will be created under ‘Build, Own, Operate and Transfer’ mode," the Mayor said.

Last Updated on Thursday, 28 March 2013 05:12
 

Rs. 500 crore more for development mission

Friday, 22 March 2013 04:24 administrator
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The Hindu                     22.03.2013

Rs. 500 crore more for development mission

Staff Reporter 

Funding will henceforth beproject based.

Mega city development mission has covered a number of civic improvement works in the past few years including the expanded areas. In the State Budget for 2013-14 Finance Minister O. Panneerselvam announced an additional Rs. 500 crore for works under the mega city development mission.

On Thursday he said “In the last two years, this government allocated Rs. 1,000 crore under the Chennai Mega City Development Mission. These allocations will strengthen the financial capacity of urban local bodies to take up more projects.”

“In order to leverage additional funds to take up more projects under these mission mode programmes, funding will henceforth be project based and grant would be restricted to a maximum of 75 per cent of the project cost for Chennai Corporation and financially stronger local bodies.”

Local body contributions

“The balance of 25 per cent shall be leveraged through local body contributions which may include loans from financial institutions. For the financially weaker urban local bodies, grant component of the project will be 90 per cent and the remaining 10 per cent will be financed through own funds or loans or by dovetailing from Infrastructure Gap Filling Fund,” he said.

The State government in 2012 gave financial approval for a grid system of roads, street lights, street furniture, footpaths and stormwater drains in zones comprising the expanded areas of Chennai Corporation as part of the Mega City Development Mission.

Mr. Panneerselvam in his revised budget for 2011-12 had announced that Rs. 500 crore under the Chennai Mega City Development Mission would supplement the available funds under various schemes.

With the conclusion of the World Bank-assisted TNUDP III, such funding was being made available for improvement of infrastructure and basic amenities in urban local bodies.

But many works under the mega city development mission continue to be delayed in Chennai for want of better monitoring.

“The work order has been issued for a number of works. But zonal-level officials are unable to make the contractors complete the work by the deadline. There should be a better monitoring mechanism,” said an official of Chennai Corporation.

Many works under the mission continue to be delayed in Chennai.

Last Updated on Saturday, 23 March 2013 06:20
 

Civic budget: Mayor goes to school

Friday, 15 March 2013 11:57 administrator
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The Times of India                     15.03.2013 

Civic budget: Mayor goes to school

COIMBATORE: The corporation budget presented by mayor S M Velusamy on Thursday stood out for the absence of any big idea.

Education got maximum fund allocation and infrastructure projects for water and sewage were promised for areas newly added to the corporation. No major infrastructure project like metro or mono rail features in the budget document but there is mention of subways and multi-level car parking which have already received the approval of the corporation. "The completion of the announced projects and the ongoing projects are the top priority of the city municipal corporation," said Velusamy, mayor, Coimbatore Municipal Corporation.

The mayor has budgeted for deficit of Rs 20.99 crore with income for the financial year 2013-14 estimated at Rs 808.12 crore as against expenditure of Rs 829.11 crore.

The major focus of the budget is on education sector and corporation school students are likely to benefit. Ranging from the distribution of tablets to 36 boys and six girls from the special corporation school for hearing and speech impaired students to self defence training for girl students from Class 8 upwards, the city corporation has made significant allocations. Career counselling, smart class rooms and yoga training will also now be a feature of corporation schools. "All the proposals included in the budget will be realised and allocations were made to ensure that the budget is balanced and effective in all aspects," said G Latha, commissioner, Coimbatore Municipal Corporation.

Expectedly, the corporation has focussed on beefing up infrastructure in the city suburbs that have been recently added to the corporation. New water distribution lines at the expense of Rs 80 lakh will be built for Kavundampalayam and Vadavalli areas. Water distribution lines in Kurichi and Kuniamuthur areas that draw water from the Aaliyar drinking water supply scheme will be built. The corporation will seek funds from the state government for these projects once a Detailed Project Report is prepared. The civic body has also allocated a crore each for implementing the Integrated Underground Sewage and stormwater drain in 40 newly-added wards of the corporation.

For the core city, Rs 2 crore has been allocated for two skywalks near Coimbatore Medical College Hospital and Singanallur Bus Stand. The corporation has also allocated Rs 12.75 crore for developing a new road from Kovaipudur to Puttuviki locality after the completion of a new bridge at Puttuviki. The route is expected to serve as an alternate way for Kerala-bound vehicles that need not enter the city centre. The corporation has announced the construction of special modernised toilets for women at Singanallur and Ukkadam bus stands and also at Corporation SRP Ammani Ammal and Oppanakara Street Girls Higher Secondary Schools. "The special toilets should be constructed at Mettupalayam and Gandhipuram bus stands," said V Ramamoorthy, CPM councillor ward no 21.

The budget has also made provision for shifting Thiagi Kumaran Market from the Town Hall area to another location with better parking facilities. Additional allocation has been allocated for shifting Aringar Anna Vegetable Market near Sai Baba Colony to Kavundampalayam, which was announced in the previous budget with an allocation of Rs 50 lakh.

Health sector will receive Rs 50 lakh for upgrading urban health posts and for conducting medical camps for sanitary workers.

Playgrounds in all five zones and 20 corporation schools are to be expanded and funds amounting to Rs 1.1 crore have been allotted for the purpose. Ten new parks in five corporation zones including two women and childrens' only parks are included in the proposals with an allocation of Rs 2 crore for these projects.

Councillors from DMK and Congress, the main opposition, boycotted the budget discussion session and claimed the corporation has only rehashed previous projects in the budget. "There is absolutely nothing new in the budget and almost everything has been already announced. Most of the announcements including skywalks and other proposed projects are long pending," said A Nandakumar, leader of opposition, CMC.
Last Updated on Friday, 15 March 2013 11:59
 
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