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Shimla, July 19 (HS). Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has urged the Central Government to adopt different criteria for approving projects under the Atal Renewal and Urban Transport Mission (AMRUT) scheme for difficult geographical hilly states like Himachal. He said that projects under AMRUT are approved on the basis of population, but population based criteria are not suitable for Himachal Pradesh, hence there is a need to relax the criteria to avail maximum benefits under this scheme.
Chief Minister Sukhu was speaking during a meeting with Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal at Himachal Bhawan in Chandigarh on Friday.
He said that the recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission should also be reviewed from time to time, as the cost of projects keeps increasing with time. Himachal Pradesh is one of the best performing states under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. Funds for Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-2 will be received after the full utilization of funds under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-1.
Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu said that the state government has imposed a complete ban on the use of plastic and this initiative is yielding concrete results. Panchayats and non-governmental organizations have played an important role in raising awareness about the harmful effects of plastic use on human life.
To speed up the development works, he urged the Central Government to amend the tender policy system and reduce the tender period from 60 days to 10 days.
Sukhu urged the Union Power Ministry to allow one megawatt solar system with battery backup to mitigate hardships caused by snowfall and adverse weather in border areas like Spiti. He said a provision of Rs 362 crore has been made to ensure uninterrupted power supply in these areas.
It was told in the meeting that the clean cities of Himachal Pradesh can be declared as Swachh Mitra Safe Cities, which will enable getting additional funds from the Central Government to enhance cleanliness efforts.
Union Minister Manohar Lal praised the performance of Himachal Pradesh and assured full cooperation from the Central Government. He said that a proposal has been received to develop a new city at Jathia Devi near Shimla and work is in progress on it. Solid waste management plants can be set up in municipal corporations, as big projects are not possible in a small state like Himachal Pradesh. He said that opportunities for common market should be explored in Himachal so that self-help groups can sell their products at one place.
While reviewing the functioning of the Power Ministry, the Union Minister suggested the State to increase power generation as the State is blessed with abundant water resources. He said the State should ensure maximum use of flowing water to harness hydropower energy.
