Indian Express 10.12.2009

Seven cities to get metered water supply

The Uttar Pradesh government will introduce metered water supply in seven major cities of the state from the next financial year 2010-11. The water tariff will be fixed on the basis of consumption or the volumetric telescopic block tariff.

This was decided at a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday. The seven cities where metered water supply will be introduced in the first phase are Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Varanasi, Allahabad, Meerut and Mathura.

The scheme will be funded under the Centrally-sponsored Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). Metered water supply is one of the pre-conditions imposed by the Centre for funding the water supply schemes from the JNNURM.

To avail the JNNURM fund, the state government has rejected the recommendation of the State Finance Commission for panchayats and urban local bodies in which it had called for exemption of metered water supply to domestic households. The state government had accepted this recommendation in April 1997

Other Cabinet decisions Second UPTU
The state government has decided to set up another technical university — Uttar Pradesh Technical University (UPTU) — at Noida in Gautam Buddha Nagar district. For setting up the second technical university, the existing UPTU Act will be amended. The need for the second UPTU was felt since the existing university at Lucknow is overburdened and has granted affiliation to as many as 434 private engineering and technical colleges.

Two handicap rehab centres to be shut down
The state government has decided to close down the rehabilitation centres in Sitapur and Jagdishpur, run by the department of the handicap welfare.

The Jagdishpur centre comes under the Amethi Lok Sabha seat represented by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. The rehabilitation centres were set up in 1980s as a pilot project of the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and were fully funded by the Centre. From April 1, 2006, the Centre had stopped funding the two centres and the state government was given the option to either shut them or run them from its own resources. Following the Supreme Court order to accommodate the employees either by the Centre or the state governments, they were given the option to join the state government service. As per the Cabinet decision, as soon as the employees decide on their option, they will be adjusted in the existing vacancies of other departments under the state government.

109th Constitutional Amendment
The Cabinet also approved the 109th amendment to the Constitution providing for extension of the SC and ST reservation facility in the state Assembly to another 10 years. It also approved extension of the facility of nominating members from the Anglo Indian community to the Assembly. The extension was necessitated as the facility’s period was ending on January 25, 2010The 109th Constitution Amendment Bill was passed by the both the Houses of the Parliament in August. As per the provision of the Constitution, a resolution in support of this amendment by at least the assemblies of half of the states of the Union is mandatory. The resolution approving the amendment will be introduced in the next session of the state Assembly.

State to implement National Secondary Education Abhiyaan
On the lines of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan, the state government has decided to implement National Secondary Education Abhiyaan in Uttar Pradesh — an ongoing Centrally-sponsored scheme for the Eleventh Plan period. The decision was taken by the Cabinet on Wednesday.

Under the scheme, the Centre will bear 75 per cent of the costs and the remaining will be borne by the state government. During the Twelfth Five Year Plan, the expenditure will be shared equally between the state and the Centre. The objectives of the scheme are to strengthen the infrastructure for the secondary education across the state, promoting girl education, providing computers, library and drinking water facility in the schools. In UP, there are 15,413 secondary schools — 6,470 impart education up to Class X and 8,443 to Class XII.