The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Coimbatore News : UGD scheme takeoff likely next year

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 15, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore

UGD scheme takeoff likely next year

By K.V. Prasad

COIMBATORE, SEPT.14. After long wait, there are indications of the Rs.168-crore underground drainage scheme taking off early next year. If the implementation begins as intended in January 2005, it will bring to end a seven-year ordeal the Coimbatore Corporation underwent in having it approved by political parties in the Council.

Official sources in the Corporation said the civic body awaited technical sanction by the Government. It is expected by October-end this year. Once obtained, this will enable the Corporation to call for bids from firms interested in implementing the scheme for zones four, five and six (the first three zones already have underground sewers).

Corporation confident

The Corporation is confident of things moving at the desired pace from now. It has crossed a period of uncertainty when the scheme required administrative sanction from the Government. Once it was cleared and also announced in the Assembly a little more than a month ago, along with many other key projects for Coimbatore, the Corporation itself gained confidence that the scheme could, at last, be implemented.

The sources also indicated that the scheme was being closely pursued at higher levels in Chennai and that there was a growing realisation that it should be implemented without loss of time.

In fact, the Corporation grew apprehensive over the last six years when the cost went up sharply and still there were no signs of implementation. Parties in the Council rejected the user charges- one-time connection deposit and monthly maintenance charges- on the grounds that they were not affordable in a city that was limping back to normality after communal riots in November-December 1997 and serial blasts in February 1998.

Cross subsidisation

Efforts to point out that higher rates for some sections were aimed at cross subsidisation so that the low-income group had to pay less did not help in convincing the parties that the rates were fair.

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-led Opposition's efforts to get substantial grant from the State Government did not succeed. The scheme was sanctioned only Rs.5.5 crores. The Opposition was crestfallen by what they saw as a measly allocation, especially when the project cost was fast galloping towards the Rs.250-crore mark. The scheme was proposed at Rs.208 crores. A year ago, after cost escalation, it was put at Rs.250 crores and plan for an additional Rs.21 crores drawn up to replace worn out sewer lines in the first three zones.

After a series of all-party meetings on the user charges, the Corporation re-worked the cost and user charges and reduced the overall estimate to Rs.168 crores. Certain components with sophisticated technology were shelved to cut the cost. The Council approved the re-worked user charges and the project was placed before Government for clearance.

Now, once the technical sanction is obtained, the Corporation can call for bids and even collect deposit from users. It aims to net a higher amount than envisaged in 1998 as the re-working of the scheme brought the unapproved layouts also under it. Even as it waits for release of funds from the World Bank, the Corporation believes that it can begin work using the money collected from the public.

The Corporation is yet to decide on additional funding options such as municipal bonds and loans from nationalised banks. But, the civic body is happy that it has moved into a phase of certainty that the scheme will be implemented and that it can go ahead with the existing option (World Bank loan).

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