New Delhi, December 27, 2014: The Haryana Government has asked the Union Government to declare Haryana Sub Region (HSR) a zone of strategic national interest and demanded special annual financial support in the Union Budget to ensure satisfactory urban infrastructure. This should be announced as a policy initiative in the Union Budget 2015-16.
The demand was made by the Finance Minister, Capt Abhimanyu, while speaking at the pre-Budget meeting of state Finance Ministers with the Union Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, in New Delhi, on Friday.
The HSR consists of 35 urban centers, including Gurgaon, Faridabad, Panipat, Sonepat and Rohtak. The growth rate of urban population in HSR has been above 60 per cent, the highest among all the constituents of NCR. These cities face a rapid growth in population as the workforce travels to work from here to the national capital.
These cities and suburban areas in HSR require huge investments in almost all sectors, including road network, mass rapid transport system, housing, sewage and waste disposal, power, water supply to cater to the growing demands of the rapidly urbanising areas. Haryana cannot create the desirable infrastructure facilities from own funds.
The loans provided by the NCR Planning Board are not sufficient for creating the infrastructure required. The Union Government should assist Haryana through capital grants to improve the quality of life of the areas surrounding Delhi, Capt Abhimanyu said.
Haryana surrounds the national capital New Delhi on three sides and 45.47% of the geographical area of Haryana falls in the NCR. One of the fastest growing economic regions of the country, it has a huge potential for creating employment opportunities for millions as well as for contributing to the national economy. Constant capital investment is required for maintenance of the existing infrastructure as well for creation of new infrastructure in the HSR. Haryana is the most urbanized state among the three NCR states other than NCTD. According to the Sub Regional Plan 2021 AD, funds required for the development of Expressways, National Highways and State Highways for 2013 17 has been estimated at Rs 15,343 crore. For the development of RRTS, Rs 2,194 crore would be required for Delhi-Sonipat-Panipat Corridor and Rs 1,684 crore for Delhi Gurgaon-Rewari-Alwar Corridor as Haryana’s share. Thus, the total amount required for the execution of these projects will be Rs 3,878 crore. “The Haryana Government wants these projects to be declared as projects of national importance which should be funded wholly by Government of India”, the Finance Minister said.
On sewerage treatment and solid waste disposal, he said that there was a gap in the treatment capacity of sewerage by 617 MLD in HSR which at the rate of Rs.7.7 crore per MLD for system and treatment would work out to Rs 4,753 crore for 2013-21. An additional amount of Rs 149.90 crore would be required for solid waste disposal for 2013-21. The amount thus required for a five-year period will be Rs 2,500 crore. Haryana will require 3,328 MW additional capacity of power for 2012-17 which would cost Rs 5 crore per MW for generation and Rs. 6.5 crore per MW for transmission and distribution. Therefore, an additional amount of Rs 38,272 crore would be required for generation and transmission of this additional capacity. On water, Capt Abhianyu said HSR faced deficiency of 2,104 MCM/year. For meeting this, the state would require an additional Rs 5,260 crore up to 2021 @ Rs.2.5 crore per MCM. The amount required for a five-year period will be Rs 2,630 crore. Haryana is undertaking or has executed the metro projects in HSR wher 80 per cent of the funds are contributed by the state government. huge amount of Rs 2,949 crore has been spent or committed to be spent by Haryana on execution of three projects: Extension of Metro to Gurgaon ( Rs. 604 crore); Extension of Metro from Badarpur to YMCA Faridabad (Rs.1,558 crore); and extension of Metro from Mundka to Bahadurgarh (Rs 788 crore).
Three projects are under active consideration for implementation in HSR and on the periphery of Chandigarh. These are: Extension of Metro from IGI Airport to IFFCO Chowk, Gurgaon; extension of Metro from YMCA Faridabad to Ballabhgarh; and setting up of Chandigarh Metro. For a new project, the Railway Ministry demands land free of cost and sharing the construction cost on a 50:50 basis. The cost of the land has increased manifold during the last few years and the state has to share about 75 per cent of the cost of the project. “Since, the resources / revenue collection capacity of the state is limited, it is not possible to fund the railway project on the above formula. It is, therefore, suggested that this policy be revised in the Railway Budget 2015-16”, Capt Abhimanyu said. “Since Hisar and Ambala in Haryana have been identified as counter-magnet areas, I would request you to kindly allocate adequate funds for the development of infrastructure in these towns so that they become flourishing centres ofgrowth and can help check migration to the NCR”, he added.
While the urban population accounts for 31per cent of the total population, it contributes more than 60 per cent of India’s GDP. It is projected that urban India will contribute nearly 75 per cent of the national GDP in the next 15 years. It is for this reason that cities, referred to as the “engines of economic growth”, must function as efficient engines something that is critical to our economic development. Haryana being largely urbanised needs urban centres that are geared to meet future needs. I would, therefore, request that at least two of Haryana’s cities be covered under the Government of India Smart City development plan, Capt Abhimanyu added.
(SK Vyas/Jalandhar)
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