Telangana’s Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister K.T. Rama Rao has urged the Centre to allocate funds in the Union Budget 2021-22 for various municipal projects in the state.
He has written letters to Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardip Singh Puri and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman requesting funds for the Strategic Nala Development Plan (SNDP), developing a sewer network infrastructure for liquid waste collection in Hyderabad Urban Agglomeration (HUA) area, a Metro Net Project in Warangal, and solid waste management in urban local bodies in the state.
KTR, as the state minister is popularly known, said that to develop the sewer network infrastructure for liquid waste collection in the HUA area, the government has introduced a Comprehensive Sewerage Master Plan (CSMP), already made detailed study of planning, survey, design, estimations and prepared a detailed project report.
He also mentioned that in compliance with the National Green Tribunal (NGT) directions to mitigate the sewage pollution in Musi river stretches and water bodies in HUA, CSMP is being given top priority. The sewage line network for a total length of 2,232 km is proposed, consisting of connection network, sub mains and trunk sewers to the STPs at a total cost of Rs 3,722 crore and the government would take up to 36 months for finishing the works, he said.
KTR requested for a sanction of 20 per cent of the project cost which would be Rs 750 crore out of the total project cost of Rs 3,722 crore.
Mentioning the recent flood situation in Hyderabad and its after effects, the minister highlighted the challenges in natural flow of water due to narrowing of nalas, and storm water drains over the years in Hyderabad.
“As a permanent solution to the issue, the government has set up Strategic Nala Development Plan (SNDP), a dedicated project headed by the GHMC to plan and develop a comprehensive storm water drainage network in Hyderabad,” he said. While the SNDP cost is Rs 1,200 crore, he sought Rs 240 crore funds for the project.
“To strengthen the public transport in Warangal, keeping in mind the present and future requirements of the citizens, the Government of Telangana intends to set up Metro Neo Project,” said KTR. He stated that at present the population of Warangal is about 15 lakh and would increase up to 35 lakh by 2051.
Metro Neo Project in Nashik, which was set up by Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Ltd, has prepared a DPR on setting up of Metro Neo Project in Warangal, similar to that of Nashik.
As per the DPR, Warangal Metro Neo Rail will be of 15.5 km length and would be laid at an estimated cost of Rs 1,050 crore. KTR requested for a sanction of Rs 210 crore from the Centre for this.
Noting that the Telangana government is in the forefront in implementing the citizen centric reforms, he said that tenders were finalised for bio-mining solid waste in the ULBs of the state at an estimated cost of Rs 258 crore for 2021-22. Tenders were also finalised for bio-mining and remediation of 70 lakh metric tons of legacy waste in ULBs in the state with an estimated cost of Rs 520 crore.
Works for construction of Fecal Sludge Treatment Plant (FSTP) in 71 ULBs have commenced and in 5 ULBs, the works have already been completed. The government is spending Rs 250 crore for the works.
DPRs for underground drainage and waste treatment were prepared for 57 ULBs in the state with an estimated cost of Rs 13, 238 crore. In the first phase, works will be taken up in about 30 ULBs at a cost of Rs 2,828 crore.
With about Rs 3,777 crore, the state government will work on various projects during FY 2021-22. “Since these are major works of infrastructure, it is requested that the Government of India may share 20 per cent of these expenditures and provide Rs 750 Crore in the budget for 2021-22,” he said.
