Union Cabinet approves phase-2 of Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban, AMRUT

The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the second phase of the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban and the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation till 2025-26.

A financial outlay of Rs 1,41,600 crore has been finalised for SBM-U 2.0, including a central share of Rs 36,465 crore, which is over 2.5 times the financial outlay of Rs 62,009 crores in the last phase of the mission, the government said in a statement.

The decisions were taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The statement said the second phase of SBM focuses on sustainability of Open Defecation Free (ODF) outcomes, achieving scientific processing of solid waste in all cities, and managing waste water in cities with less than one lakh population as per Census 2011.

The government said that the implementation of the mission components will be done in a structured and time-bound manner, with thorough gap analysis of required infrastructure, detailed five-year action plans, and annual action plans with timelines.

"The mission will be completely paperless, digital, leveraging digital technology for complete transparency and accountability through GIS-mapped waste management infrastructure, robust user interface, online grievance redressal system, end-to-end online monitoring of projects starting from project creation to fund release, and project progress monitoring on integrated GIS-based platform," it said.

The Cabinet also approved the second phase of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation as a step towards Atmanirbhar Bharat and with the aim of making the cities 'water secure' and 'self-sustainable' through circular economy of water, the statement said.

Total indicative outlay for AMRUT 2.0 is Rs 2,77,000 crore, including a central share of Rs 76,760 crore, for five years from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26.

"The cabinet understands that providing reliable and affordable water supply and sanitation services to urban households is a national priority. This will be achieved by providing functional tap connections to all households, undertaking water source conservation/ augmentation, rejuvenation of water bodies and wells, recycle/re-use of treated used water and rainwater harvesting," the government said.

The project will lead to ease of living by providing piped-water supply and sewerage and septage facility to urban households, it added.