The Hindu                11.06.2013

TN plan outlay fixed at Rs.37,128 crore

The plan outlay for Tamil Nadu for 2013-14 has been fixed at Rs. 37,128 crore, which is 32.8 per cent higher than that of 2012-13.

The plan size for 2013-14 includes the Central assistance of about Rs. 3,165 crore. In addition, Rs. 9,000 crore is likely to be given from the Centre to the State through various Centrally-sponsored schemes. Thus, taking all resources, the plan assistance from the Centre to Tamil Nadu is expected to be over Rs.12,000 crore during 2013-14, a Commission release said.

The plan outlay was decided at a meeting held here between Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, her officials and Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and his team even as she criticised the Centre of copying some of the schemes being implemented by her government.

Some of its schemes were “belated attempts by Centre to replicate State schemes,” she said. For instance, the Indira Gandhi Matritva Suraksha Yojana “draws inspiration” from the Tamil Nadu’s Dr. Muthulakshmi Reddy Scheme, under which government provided a much higher benefit of Rs. 12,000 and a wider coverage, she said. The Commission complimented the State government for its sound fiscal position arising from significant increase in mobilisation of resources, especially State’s own tax revenue for the State Plan. “The State’s Tax-GSDP ratio is likely to cross 10 per cent during 2013-14 making it as one of the leading States in the country in terms of tax mobilisation. The outstanding liabilities as a percentage of GSDP are well within the fiscal consolidation requirements as per the 13th Finance Commission.”

It noted that State continued to maintain favourable social indicators, especially health indicators such as birth rate, Infant Mortality Rate (IMR), Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR), Total Fertility Rate (TFR), Neo-natal Mortality Rate (NMR).

“The State also ranks better than the national average in most of education indicators. However, there is need to focus on issues of quality of education and reducing the gender gap.”

Later, Ms. Jayalalithaa told journalists that a 20 per cent cut was made by the Centre in the plan expenditure in the revised estimates for 2012-13. “In 2012-2013, the Centre budgeted plan assistance for the State for Rs. 3,473.48 crore. But finally the amount released was only Rs.2762.14 crore. So, the credibility of the entire planning and budgetary process has been undermined and the State finances and scheme implementation have been adversely affected as a result.”

Despite being let down by the UPA-II government, the State government not only fulfilled but overachieved its plan outlay of Rs.28,000 crore fixed for 2012-13 with the State’s own resources. Not only that the additional central assistance (ACA) for 2012-13 was fixed at Rs. 160 crore but only Rs. 128.63 crore was actually released.

“The non-release of additional Central assistance promised in a meeting of the Union Planning Commission at the level of the Deputy Chairman with the State Chief Minister is a serious matter and we hope that this is an aberration and will not be repeated again this year and we hope that whatever the Central government or the Planning Commission has committed itself to this year will be released in full,” she said.

For 2013-14, she said in terms of resources, 91 per cent of the plan would be financed through the State’s own resources supported by budgetary borrowings and only 9 per cent would come from the Centre.

Earlier, Mr. Ahluwalia told newspersons that “..like everybody else they (TN) had a slowdown in growth this year. I think they have problems in the power sector, they have difficulties in getting coal supplies.”

“...like in the rest of the country, water is going to be very big issue (in TN).

The State is urbanising very rapidly and their own forecast according to the vision documents they have prepared (is that) by 2023 Tamil Nadu will be 67 per cent urban,” he added.

The Deputy Chairman said Ms. Jayalalithaa expressed her reservations on transfer of funds. She wanted that the funds should go to the consolidated fund of the State and not to be passed on directly (for schemes).

The Hindu                04.06.2013

Long-overdue check dam project to finally begin

The structure in Thirukandalam across Kosasthalaiyar River will help store water, recharge table.

A long-pending project to build a check dam in Thirukandalam across the Kosasthalaiyar River, may finally take shape next month.

The Water Resources Department (WRD) is all set to settle the bids for the nearly Rs. 33-crore project, and will start construction work in mid-July. Thirukandalam is in Tiruvallur district, 27 km from Chennai.

The check dam aims at storing nearly 200 cubic feet of water that usually drains into the sea, which in turn will help recharge the groundwater table in villages in and around Thirukandalam. The water crisis in the locality is currently so severe that farmers in around 10 villages — including Agaram, Arikambedu and Guruvayal — have shifted from paddy cultivation to horticulture, as the groundwater table has dipped to below 80 feet.

G. Durai, a resident of Alinzhivakkam said the Kosasthalaiyar River, still overflowed during the monsoon season. However, illegal sand mining around it and nearby waterbodies had led to depletion of the water table. “I now grow jasmine and rose plants in my fields,” he said.

The check dam, which will be built between Tamaraipakkam anicut and Cholavaram Lake, will store surplus water that is let into the river from Poondi reservoir and the anicut.

Normally, a check dam is around 1.5 metres high. However, this check dam will be constructed at a height of 5.5 metre, an official said.

“The Kosasthalaiyar River carries about 65,000 cubic feet per second of water, and is filled to its brim during the rainy season. We want to use the space available at the point where the river is at its widest — 175 metres — to store excess water. This will help us retain surface water up to 10 km on the river,” the official said.

Nearly 200 cubic feet of water, which is equal to the amount of drinking water supplied to the city for a week, will be stored.

Another benefit of the check dam would be the possibility of transferring water to Cholavaram Lake, if the city needs it, the official added. Officials hope this project will be completed soon as, with a water crisis looming, and other projects to store water stalled, the State needs it desperately.

Originally, this project was to be a storage structure to store Krishna water from Andhra Pradesh. However, following protests over land acquisition plans, it remained on paper for over two decades. Last year, to meet Chennai’s growing water demands, the State government revived the project, and to avoid land acquisition, changed its design to that of a check dam.

WRD officials said that apart from building the check dam, the project will also ensure that the river’s flood banks, eroded in some places due to rampant sand mining, will be raised to a height of 10 metres.

The project, funded by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, is expected to be completed in a year.