JAWAHARLAL NEHRU NATIONAL URBAN RENEWAL MISSION (JNNURM-II) FUNDS TO BE DOUBLED

The Development has been a great decisive factor in eloctoral process and has given upper edge to the congress led UPA. As per the committment made in agenda Government is making further effort to accelerate growth in urban infrastructure, the government is contemplating to launch a new version of its infrastructural initiative, the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), with an allocation of Rs 1,00,000 crore, twice the amount meant for JNNURM phase-I. The idea is to support the urban life with the minimum basic infrastructure and have proper data base of the same. The government is planning to take cities with a population of five lakh and JNNURM-II may run over for the period of seven years.

The proposal to initiate the JNNURM-II has already been sent by the urban development ministry to the finance ministry to make provision of funds for smooth running of the project in the 2009-10 Union Budget. As soon as the acceptance will be received the new scheme will replace the existing one, which is scheduled to lapse in 2012. As per the information the phase I is starving with the shortage of funds and not able to really hit the target level. Further funds and experience of phase I will support the successful launch and implementation of phase II.

Under the new proposed scheme, the ministry of urban development may include a new funding pattern with less central assistance. The projects will have tighter monitoring, and central assistance will depend on financial closure of projects.water supply, underground wastage and solid waste management, and storm water drains would form the proposed new JNNRUM scheme with PPP model, with the government having the controlling stake. Under phase-I of the initiative, 63 mission cities were funded. The ministry sanctioned 463 projects worth Rs 49,743.46 crore, and central assistance of Rs 8,253 crore was released to shape up the programme.