Orissa to prepare report on gap funding aid

These three projects are Rs 3200 crore Samuka Special Tourism Project, Rs 1500 crore Sambalpur-Rourkela road project and the Rs 1500 crore worth Bhubaneswar Solid Waste Management Project.These projects worth about Rs 6200 crore will be implemented on a pilot basis. 

"A new format has been developed for availing of  the assistance from VGF and the Orissa government will have to prepare a DPR keeping in view the new format  and submit it to the Planning Commission", Subash Pani, secretary, Planning Commission said. 

After reviewing the projects taken up in the Public-Private-Partnership ( PPP) mode by the Orissa government, Pani told media persons that the Centre can provide upto 20 percent of the project cost under the VGF. So the state government can take advantage of it. 

He said, the Centre introduced the VGF last fiscal and no state has availed of the assistance from this fund created with the objective of bridging the gap in funding  viable projects taken up in PPP mode. 

Pani said, the Orissa government plans to execute 35 important infrastructure projects in PPP mode. While 25 projects are in the pipeline, 10 projects are on going. 

The on-going projects include Rs 68 crore Palasapanga- Bamberi road, Gopalpur port, Dhamra Port, Rs 480 crore international convention centre, Rs 146 crore IT and Corporate Tower (Bhubaneswar), Rs 500 crore Info Park(Bhubaneswar), Rs 35.67 crore Knowledge park, Rs 352 crore SEZ-BPO at Mancheswar, Rs 76 crore Commercial and IT Complex at Rourkela. 

Pani said, the state government has constituted Orissa Infrastructure Development Fund ( OIDF) last fiscal and it has agreed to pump in Rs 100 crore for meeting the urgent requirement of the important infrastructure projects taken up in the state. Similarly, the PPP cell of the state government will also be strengthened. 

However, the planning commission rejected the proposal of the state government for taking up the computerissation of 117 registration offices of the revenue department under PPP.