Four Years Of AMRUT: Only 15% Funds Utilised So Far

It was in June, 2015, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Smart City and the Atal Mission for Urban Rejuvenation and Transformation (AMRUT) to deck up the infrastructure in Indian cities. The project was well received by the industry experts, and if executed with a will, the mission could change the face of cities and towns where even basic facilities are missing.

With the four year in the passing, PropGuide takes a look at the development in process in 500 cities listed under AMRUT:

Over 1,100 parks developed across country

According to the housing ministry, more than 4,288 acres of land is being enriched as green spaces and parks under the mission.  So far, over 1,100 parks have been developed under the mission across the country.  These parks have children friendly equipment, disabled friendly features, open gyms, etc.

Latest reforms

*Of the 97-lakh target, 62 lakh street lights have already been replaced with LED lights. 

*Energy audit of water pumps has been completed in 358 cities; MoUs have been signed for another 446 cities.

*The online building permission system (OBPS) has become functional in Delhi and Mumbai. It has also been implemented in 439 AMRUT cities. 

Formation of apex committees

To ensure effective implementation of the mission, the programme was planned to be managed at three levels- apex committee at the National level, State level High Powered Steering Committee and Urban Local Bodies. All three committees conduct time-to-time meetings wherein state level team submits an annual report of work done so far, current status and how funds have been allocated.

Funding

Being a centrally sponsored scheme, the funding assistance is provided to the extent of 50 per cent of the project cost in case of cities with a population of fewer than 10 lakh each and up to one-third in the case of cities with a population of above 10 lakh each. The total outlay being Rs 77,640 crore (including central assistance of Rs 35,990), the funds are being released in parts to the states keeping in mind the developmental work being done. So far 14 states which include Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Gujarat etc., have received 20 per cent of the allocated amount under the scheme.

However, even after four years, out of the total budget only 15 per cent fund has been utilised, according to the statistics furnished by the ministry of housing and urban affairs. Around 1,885 projects worth Rs 5,075 crore (15% utilisation of total mission target) have been completed. More than half of the projects are under implementation (worth Rs 62,201 crore). 

Implementation

Since AMRUT Mission focuses on the basic infrastructure, following were the focus areas of the scheme with the budget outlay:

• Water supply- Rs 9,011 crore
• Sewerage facilities and septage management- Rs 32,456 crore
• Storm water drains to reduce flooding- Rs 2,969 crore
• Pedestrian, non-motorised and public transport facilities, parking spaces- Rs 1,436 crore
• Enhancing amenity value of cities by creating and upgrading green spaces, parks and recreation centres, especially for children- Rs 1,768 crore

Though AMRUT mission statement documented milestone and fixed timelines for each of the focus areas, some of the states are well ahead of the timelines and have implemented most of the tasks like developing e-governance platform, digitisation of Urban Local Bodies, professionalization of municipal bodies, review by building by-laws, municipal tax and fees and most popular of all- Swachh Bharat Mission.

While centre is yet to update the mission status on its official website, the previous data and monitoring report shows that states like Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka were leading the pack with maximum achievement of targets, whereas Haryana was lagging behind in several aspects like municipal taxation system, energy and water auditing, professionalising municipal cadre etc. Similarly, Punjab was almost at the bottom of the table when it comes to Clean India Mission targets while West Bengal had not yet started its e-governance platform and water sewage transformation works due to lack of funds.

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