JNNURM lifeline likely

The UPA government's flagship infrastructure scheme, the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), could be extended beyond its 2012 termination time line, although the Centre was yet to take a concrete decision on the matter.

Moreover, an extension is not improbable considering the Urban Development Ministry has already sent a proposal to the Cabinet for increase the corpus under the JNNURM to Rs 1,50,000 crore from Rs 1,00,000 crore at present.

“Though we are waiting the Cabinet's approval for increasing the corpus and presently, the deadline for the JNNURM remains 2012, I can't rule out the possibility of the scheme being extended,” Minister of State for Urban Development Saugata Roy said here today.

Roy, who was in the city to attend the annual general meeting of the Indian Plastics Federation, said that his ministry had already approached the World Bank with the intention of procuring a $5 billion loan.

He had earlier also said that this loan would be in place before the next union budget. In his Budget speech, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee had increased the Centre’s JNNURM allocation by 87 per cent to Rs 12,887 crore for 2009-10.