Infrastructure

Urban Infrastructure

Infrastructure development is recognized as an essential factor to sustain economic growth of the country. The quality, efficiency and productivity of the infrastructure affect the quality of life, health and general living conditions in the society. Considering the special features of urbanization and the geographical peculiarities of Kerala, the process of urbanisation in the State requires special attention while moulding various urban infrastructure development programmes. The scattered pattern of urbanisation and high density of population of the State are huge challenges for the creation of urban infrastructure. In the sphere of urban infrastructure there are schemes like waste management system, city sanitation plans, establishment and enhancement of public comfort facilities, implementation and improvement of sewerage schemes, storm water drainage schemes, effective parking policy and modern mechanised parking system, beautification of cities and creation of green cities and non motorized urban conveyance run departmentally through local bodies. Rapid urbanisation and intense commercial development in cities has necessitated the need for improved facilities of transport and housing. As far as transportation system in the State is considered, the daily transport demand is expected to grow from present 135 lakh trips to over 180 lakh passenger trips by 2025. Vizhinjam International Deepwater Multipurpose Seaport, Kochi Metro Rail Project and Monorail Project in Thiruvananthapuram are the ambitious projects of Government of Kerala, being developed in Kerala. Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission has initiated effecting steps towards improving bus transportation. Housing is one of the fundamental necessities of society along with the provision of basic facilities like water supply, sanitation, transportation and power. Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programme (IHSDP), Basic Services to the Urban Poor

(BSUP), Rajeev Awas Yojana (RAY) and Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) are the major Centrally Sponsored schemes in this regard. The major urban development programmes being implemented in the State are discussed below.

Kerala Sustainable Urban Development Project (KSUDP)

The externally aided project funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) dealt with the improvement, upgradation and expansion of existing urban infrastructure facilities and basic urban environmental services in five Municipal Corporations of the State viz; Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Kochi, Thrissur and Kozhikode. The loan period of ADB has ended on June 30, 2016. Altogether 11 sewerage packages and septage treatment plant in Kollam have to be completed. During 2015-16 an amount of 140 crore was budgeted and the expenditure incurred was 22.94 crore. Status of major projects included under KSUDP are given in Appendix 5.35. In addition to the above the other projects being undertaken through KSUDP are establishment of package septage treatment plants, nagarajothi project and Urban 2020 scheme.

Capital Region Development Project

The Capital Region Development Project (CRDP) was introduced in 2002 to improve the quality of life of people in the capital city by strengthening and improving the critical infrastructures like roads, water supply, solid waste management, surface water drainage, city beautification and bus terminals. The activities pertaining to CRDP Phase I have been implemented by Kerala Sustainable Urban Development Project (KSUDP) through various agencies like Kerala Water Authority, TRIDA, Kerala Road Fund Board and KSRTC.

In 2012, second phase of the planning process under CRDP-II was conceived to kick start the integrated development process for entire capital region including the suburbs. The identified projects are classified into two groups viz. improvement of public mobility & road safety and economic development. This includes improvement of city roads, pedestrian safety infrastructure, junction improvement schemes, parking facilities and parking policy. During 2015-16 an amount of 7.79 crore was utilised for different activities under CRDP. Details of projects undertaken by Capital Region Development Programme are given in Appendix 5.36.

Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM)

Government of India adopted a mission mode approach for implementation of urban infrastructure improvement programme in a time bound manner in selected cities through the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission launched in 2005. The two cities selected as Mission Cities from the State under the 1st phase of JnNURM were Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi. However, only the bus projects of Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi were completed before the end of the mission period on March 31, 2014. Three projects were dropped and one was foreclosed due to public protest. The remaining projects are included in the spillover work.

On expiry of the mission period of the 1st phase of JnNURM on March 31, 2014, the Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India announced sanction of new projects under the Transition Phase for a period of 3 years from April 1, 2014 onwards. Under the transition phase, sanction was accorded for the procurement of 400 buses for improving urban transportation in the various cities of the State excluding Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi. Under the transition phase, 110 AC Low Floor Buses and 100 Non-AC Low Floor Buses were procured in Kozhikode, Kalpetta, Malappuram, Kottayam, Thodupuzha, Pathanamthitta, Kannur, Kasaragod, Thrissur, Palakkad, Kollam and Alappuzha and the supply of remaining buses is under process. The expenditure incurred for the year 2015-16 was 73.02 crore. Details of projects approved for implementation under JnNURM are given in Appendix 5.37.

The Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT) is a sub-scheme of JnNURM launched by Government of India during the year 2005-06 to improve the infrastructure in small and medium towns in the country in a planned manner. At present 5 water supply schemes and 2 solid waste management schemes are progressing as spillover projects. The cumulative expenditure reported as on October 31, 2016 is 442.26 crore. In the transition phase of UIDSSMT for a period of 3 years with effect from April 1, 2014, six projects worth 184.47 crore were sanctioned and one project for solid waste management scheme having an approved project cost of 14.66 crore was released by Government of India. Details of projects approved under UIDSSMT are given in Appendix 5.38.

Atal Mission For Rejuvenation And Urban Transformation (AMRUT)

Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) is one of the new initiatives of Ministry of Urban Development launched in June 2015. Project period of AMRUT is five years from the financial year 2015-16 to 2019-20. Nine towns have been identified from the State for funding under AMRUT. The list includes 6 municipal Corporations and Alappuzha, Palakkad & Guruvayoor Municipalities. The scheme aims at providing basic services to households and build amenities in cities which will improve the quality of life for all, especially the poor and the disadvantaged. The total number of projects approved is 221.

Smart Cities Mission (SCM)

The Smart Cities Mission is a flagship programme of Government of India covering 100 cities for a duration of five years (2015-16 to 2019-20). In the State, Kochi city has been selected and Government of India has released 2 crore as additional office expenses for the preparation of smart city plan prepared for Kochi during 2015-16. The Kochi smart city has prioritised projects under urban mobility, tourism, urban transport and smart solutions as priority sectors. Total project cost of 2076 crore was submitted and has received approval from Government of India. Thiruvananthapuram city has initiated the process to prepare Smart City Proposal (SCP) to participate in the 2nd phase of Smart Cities Challenge.

Basic Services To The Urban Poor (BSUP)

Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) is a sub-component of Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission which is implemented through Kudumbashree. The duration of the mission is seven years beginning from 2005-06. Only two corporations in the state, Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi come under the scheme. Under this scheme, out of 22257 houses sanctioned, construction of 18347 has commenced and 16227 houses have been completed till October 31, 2016. The total expenditure incurred for the project so far is 226.13 crore. Details of projects sanctioned under BSUP for the two Corporations are given in Appendix 5.39. The physical achievements of the scheme are summarized in Appendix 5.40.

Rajiv Awas Yojana

Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY), a flagship project of Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, launched by Hon’ble President of India on June, 2010 envisages a “Slum Free India” with inclusive and equitable cities in which every citizen has access to basic civic infrastructure, social amenities and decent shelter. All the 6 corporations in the State were selected under RAY. 811slums in 6 corporations were covered under the scheme. The project aims at tackling the issues of slums in a definitive manner. Total project cost approved in 5 ULBs is 160.75 crore. An amount of 3626 lakh has been released ( 2892 lakh as Central Share and 734 lakh as State Share) to SLNA, out of which 3508 lakh has been transferred to the concerned urban local bodies which are the implementing agencies. During 2015-16 out of 2159 dwelling units sanctioned, construction of 143 units was started and 18 completed. Expenditure incurred till date is 2223.58 lakh and the expenditure during 2015-16 is 124 lakh.

As of now, out of total sanctioned 2159 houses, construction of 94 new houses has been completed and 438 are in progress. In June 2015 Government of India has subsumed Rajiv Awas Yojana project with “Housing for All” by 2022 scheme. Projects sanctioned under RAY are given in Appendix 5.41.

Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)

The scheme was officially launched in the State by Hon’ble Chief Minister on December 8, 2015 and is being implemented in all 93 Urban Local Government institutions. The mission seeks to address the housing requirement of urban poor including slum dwellers with the mandate of providing housing for all by 2022. The mission will support construction of houses upto 30 square meter carpet area. Detailed project reports for beneficiary led construction (New house-14350 and enhancement-917) of 11 Urban Local Bodies,viz Pattananthitta, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kannur, Kasaragod, Alappuzha, Thodupuzha, Kozhikode, Kollam and Kalpetta have been approved by the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee Meeting. DPR preparation activities are ongoing in the other ULBs.

Integrated Housing And Slum Development Programme (IHSDP)

Integrated Housing and Slums Development Programme (IHSDP), launched during 2006-07, aims at the holistic development of slums in urban areas. The basic objective of the scheme is to strive for holistic slum development with a healthy environment by providing adequate shelter and basic infrastructure facilities to the slum dwellers of the identified urban areas. IHSDP is to be implemented in all towns and cities identified as per 2001 Census cities, except cities/towns covered under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi Corporations).Under this scheme, out of 14211 houses sanctioned, construction of 9184 have been started and 7427 completed till October 31, 2016. The total expenditure incurred for the project so far is 164.56 crore. During 2015-16, Government of India informed that the project will be discontinued from March 31, 2015 onwards. However, later the project completion period was extended up to March 31, 2017. The achievements of the scheme are summarized in Appendix 5.42. Details of projects approved by Government of India and fund released to 53 urban local bodies are given in Appendix 5.43.

National Urban Livelihood Mission

The Government of India has launched the National Urban Livelihood Mission (NULM) by replacing the previous scheme SJSRY for reducing poverty and vulnerability of the urban poor. The mission aims to reduce poverty and vulnerability of the urban poor households by enabling them to access gainful self employment and skilled wage employment opportunities. So far 2960 SHGs have been funded under this programme. During 2015-16 an amount of 459.11 lakh has been expended for the scheme. The physical and financial achievement and the district wise thrift and credit operation under NULM as on October 31, 2016 are shown in Appendix 5.44, Appendix 5.45 and Appendix 5.46 respectively.

Ayyankali Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme

Ayyankali Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme was started during 2009-10. It is intended to address the unemployment and under employment problems in the urban society. The objective of the scheme is to enhance livelihood security in urban areas by providing at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment to every household whose adult members are willing to do unskilled manual labour. The scheme is structured in the pattern of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. The present wage rate is 240. During the year 2015-16, an amount of 1500 lakh was provided in the budget and 1012.17 lakh has been expended for the scheme and it has created 5.06 lakh work days.

Preparing Master Plans and Detailed Town Plans

The Scheme “Preparing Master Plans and Detailed Town plans” was introduced in the year 2009-10 which aims at preparing development plans and detailed town planning schemes for the planned development of the urban areas in the State. Development Plans for 32 towns were started in the first phase, 31 towns in the second phase and 26 towns in the third phase. In addition, technical works of Master Plan for Kovalam Vizhinjam area and Medical College area have been completed under Phase II programme. Technical works of all master plans included in the first phase and 13 master plans of the second phase have been completed and the remaining is under various stages of preparation. Master plans prepared under three phases is given in Appendix 5.47.

Development Authorities and Urban Infrastructure

The objective of the Development Authorities is to achieve sustainable and comprehensive development in the area which comes under these authorities. Major activities undertaken by the Development Authorities are construction of shopping complexes, bus stand and terminals, parking plazas, development of plots for construction of buildings and widening of important roads in the cities. There are five Development Authorities viz. Thirvananthapuram Development Authority (TRIDA), Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA), Thrissur Development Authority, Calicut Development Authority and Kollam Development Authority. During 2015-16 an amount of 45 crore was allocated to these authorities and the expenditure incurred was 15.94 crore. During 2016-17 an amount of 55 crore was earmarked to these authorities. Major projects undertaken by TRIDA are given in Appendix 5.48.