The Hindu : Karnataka / Belgaum News : Take advantage of NKUIDP, local bodies told

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Aug 13, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Belgaum

Take advantage of NKUIDP, local bodies told

By Our Staff Correspondent

BELGAUM, AUG. 12. The Minister for Municipal Administration, S.R. More, called upon the local bodies to come forward to take advantage of the ambitious North Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development Project(NKUIDP) for improving water service delivery.

He was addressing a town-level consultation workshop on the proposed NKUIDP here on Thursday. Present at the workshop included Abhay Patil, MLA, and Krishnan, Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Bangalore.

Mr. More said that the project aimed at improving drinking water distribution system in the identified towns and cities with financial assistance/loan from Asian Development Bank and grants.

District level committees would be formed to monitor its implementation.

21 towns identified

Earlier, the Joint Managing Director of Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation, Atul Kumar Tiwari, who made an audio-visual presentation to explain the salient features of the Asian Development Bank assisted NKUIDP, said that 21 towns, including all the district headquarters of new districts had been identified for the proposed project. They are: Badami, Bidar, Bijapur, Basavakalyan, Belgaum, Bellary, Chamarajanagar, Davangere, Gadag-Betegeri, Gangavati, Gokak, Gulbarga, Haveri, Hospet, Hubli-Dharwad, Jamkhandi, Koppal, Rabakavi-Banahatti, Raichur, Ranebennur and Yadgir.

Funding would be based on previous ADB assisted projects i.e., 70 per cent loan and 30 per cent grants. The rate of interest on the loan component will be 12 per cent to 13.5 per cent and 15 per cent in case of default in repayment.

He said that the project could be implemented only if the local body/authority concerned came forward with its preparation, including repayment capacity and on operation and maintenance of the assets created under the project through additional resource mobilisation.

He said that the urban local bodies/urban development authorities could improve their debt services/repayment capacity by evolving good and efficient management practices. By improving their finances, these bodies could ensure huge investments for the infrastructural development works in the city.

Investment

The former Mayor and veteran Kannada activist, Siddangouda Patil, said that the north Karnataka region, including Belgaum district, remained neglected for long. It was in the realm of the things that the Nanjundappa Committee on Redressal of Grievances of North Karnataka region was formed, which recommended an investment of Rs. 200 crores every year for a period of five years to take up infrastructural development works in the region.

Therefore, he said, the burden of repayment should be with the government in the interest of justice and redressing the grievances of regional imbalances in true sense.

Ramesh Kudachi, MLA, said that the people were disinclined to pay increased taxes as they were demanding facilities/developments first. He also observed that the finances of the Corporation were in bad shape owing to abolishment of Octroi and exponential growth of the city's population and expansion in the area over the years.

The Development Commissioner for North Karnataka, Chiranjeevi Singh, said that even while recommending Rs. 200 crores investment every year, the Nanjundappa committee also recommended that the funds should be mobilised from the "water user" communities.

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