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General Administration

Plan commission okays 20% jump in state’s annual outlay

Friday, 19 July 2013 10:26 administrator
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The Indian Express                19.07.2013

Plan commission okays 20% jump in state’s annual outlay

The Planning Commission today approved a 20 per cent hike in the Uttar Pradesh's Annual Plan expenditure and fixed it at Rs 69,200 crore for the current fiscal.

"The Plan size has been agreed at Rs 69,200 crore, which includes the central assistance to the State Plan of about Rs11,225 crore. In addition, Rs 18,000 crore is likely to flow from the Centre to UP through various Centre-sponsored schemes. Thus, the Plan funding from the Centre to UP from all sources is expected to be over Rs 30,000 crore during 2013-14," said a communique issued by the Planning Commission after the meeting between UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Planning Commission's deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

While appreciating the state's performance in social sectors, the Planning Commission today suggested the minister to use the PPP route for state government's plan to connect all districts with four-lane roads.

"Regarding the state government's proposal to connect all district headquarters with four-lane roads and construct 300 bridges and 100 road overbridges (ROB) in the state, it is suggested that the state may use PPP mode for these projects so that it could benefit from the Viability Gap Funding Scheme," the Commission said after the meeting.

Akhilesh's attention was also drawn to the "declining" share of manufacturing sector/industry in the Gross State Domestic Product and the Commission was learnt to have suggested the need to incentivise private sector investment "to revive the industrial sector in the state".

Akhilesh, in this context, was learnt to have highlighted the proposed new industrial policy in the state aimed to create a conducive atmosphere for investors in the state.

He is learnt to have said that the state would focus on economic infrastructure and earmark 20 per cent of the outlay for this sector.

 

AMC to sign sister-city MoU with Houston

Friday, 19 July 2013 10:22 administrator
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The Indian Express                19.07.2013

AMC to sign sister-city MoU with Houston

The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Houston taking forward the sister-city partnership between Ahmedabad and the US cities. Earlier, the AMC had signed similar agreements with the American cities of Atlanta and Columbus.

A sister-city agreement is a partnership between two cities to carry out cultural, educational and business projects jointly.

Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC) (Gujarat) chairman Mihir Joshi said, "There is an invitation from the Houston mayor."

Meenaxi Patel, mayor of Ahmedabad said, "We are looking at industrial and cultural interaction, as the two cities are closely inter-linked. Since there is a considerable Gujarati population in Houston, we hope to bring these two cities closer on other platforms including education and exchange programmes."

IACC members met Ahmedabad mayor Meenaxi Patel on Thursday with regard to the issue.

Patel added that though the deadline for signing of an MoU had not been finalised, it was expected to happen soon, followed by visits from local body representatives of both cities.

 

AMC set to install ventilating columns over manhole covers

Friday, 19 July 2013 09:10 administrator
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The Indian Express                19.07.2013

AMC set to install ventilating columns over manhole covers

The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) will install a ventilating column system over manhole covers, after deaths in Narol earlier this year were believed to be caused by poisonous gases emanating from sewers. The project, expected to cost Rs 4 crore, will include all manhole covers in the city, especially in the old city areas.

In January, three people, including two children, were found dead in Narol. It was suspected that poisonous gases from the drains led to these deaths. "The project was floated after the Narol incident. It is meant to stop the recurrence of similar incidents in the future," said AMC city engineer Tarun Lad. Details from each zone have already been called for to gauge the number of manhole covers and positioning of the ventilating columns. The project testing has been done in areas around SP ring road and will soon be replicated all over the city. According to civic authorities, the project is expected to be completed within six months of releasing the tenders.

Presently, there is a manhole after every 30-40 metres on the main sewage trunk in Ahmedabad, with dangerous gases, like carbon monoxide, methane and sulphur, emanating from it. The ventilated columns to be installed on the manhole covers are expected to take care of these gases.

 
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