States must play pro-active role to ensure urban

Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu today said deficiencies in urban planning and governance hinders urban transformation and states should play a pro- active role in removing these hurdles.
The Urban Development Minister also announced that the Centre under its Counter-Magnet City scheme will fund the construction of an underground pedestrian-way in Jaipur.
"The country is taking a definite shape under the 'Reform, Perform and Transform' approach suggested by Prime Minister Narendra Modi," Naidu said.
The minister said, "This was evident in the speed, skill and scale of urban planning and execution, project formulation and approval, and the volume of investments being approved."

Terming urban transformation as the need of the hour, he said, "It is a challenging task given the deficiencies in urban planning, governance and capacities of urban local bodies, and inefficient financial and resource management."
"We need a pro-active political leadership at the state and the city levels for ensuring urban transformation. Wherever, chief ministers have taken interest, the results have been better. Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje is doing so and the outcomes are there for all of us to witness," Naidu said.

The minister was here in the city to review six Urban Development Ministry schemes being run in Rajasthan.

Terming their progress as "satisfactory", he said, " The Centre has given a release order of nearly Rs 206 crore, including Rs 184.83 crore for the Swachh Bharat Mission and Rs 21.38 crore for the National Urban Livelihood Mission."
He also asked officials to send the detailed project report for the pedestrian way.
"The state government has taken the initiative of signing an MoU with Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) to install LED street lights in all 190 cities and town at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore," Naidu said
Besides, the state is also working towards replacing old water pump-sets with energy efficient systems in all the 29 Atal Mission cities and towns, he said.

The minister however, expressed disappointment over Jaipur lagging in the Swachh Sarvekshan, saying that only Rajasthan's Bundi district could make it into the rankings.
"I was disappointed when I saw the rankings, and found only Bundi at the 171 th position. Jaipur could not make it. Our officers have reviewed the progress and there is improvement now," he said.
The officers have promised to work in all the cities to make them clean, he said.