Infra development in naxal areas a success: PWD minister

The Chhattisgarh Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Rajesh Munat today termed his governments action plan for developing infrastructure in the state's naxal-affected areas a success.
The minister, who also holds the housing and environment and transport portfolios, was giving a detailed account of achievements of his departments on completion of 14 years of the BJP government in Chhattisgarh.
In the last 14 years, 1890 kms of roads have been constructed in remote areas of the naxal-affected Bastar region while the construction of around 1000 kms of roads is underway there, he said.
Under the Centre's scheme for Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected areas, 1326 kms of roads have been constructed in Bastar (division), Rajnandgaon (district) and Surguja (division) areas, he added.

Besides, the department has also constructed 995 new bridges during this period across the state including 138 bridges in Bastar division, he said.
He added that the annual budget of the PWD department, which was Rs 773 crore in 2003-04, has increased to Rs 7795 crore in 2016-17.

The construction of Dornapal-Chintalnar road and the bridge on Shabri River (500 meter) in the Maoisthit Sukma district are major examples, he said.
The minister added that under the Mukhyamantri Awas Yojana, a target of constructing 40,000 houses in Naya Raipur- the upcoming capital- has been set.
The state government has set the goal to ensure settlement of five lakh people in Naya Raipur which is emerging as the smart city of 21st century, he added.