The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Final approval for Chennai metro rail project soon

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Dec 19, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Final approval for Chennai metro rail project soon

A. Srivathsan

Centre to help Tamil Nadu Government implement Bus Rapid Transit System in four cities, says Jaipal Reddy

— Photo: K.V. Srinivasan

AUSPICIOUS START: Union Minister for Urban Development Jaipal Reddy (right) inaugurates ‘INFRA 2007-MAP Tomorrow’s Chennai,’ organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry in Chennai on Tuesday. Kanimozhi, MP; Gopal Srinivasan, chairman, CII, Tamil Nadu (second from right); G.R.K. Reddy, chairman, INFRA-2007; R. Sellamuthu, Secretary, Housing and Urban Development; and Manikam Ramaswami, vice-chairman, CII, are in the picture.

Chennai: The Government of India will soon give its final approval for the Chennai Metro Rail project and help the State Government implement the Bus Rapid Transit System in Chennai, Coimbatore, Tiruchi and Madurai, said Jaipal Reddy, Union Minster for Urban Development.

Speaking at the “INFRA 2007-MAP Tomorrow’s Chennai,” a conference organised by the CII, the Minister said that urbanisation had become a universal phenomenon that offered exciting opportunities. Developing cities far off from metros would not be useful. Instead, urban nodes around cities should be developed, he said. He cited the example of National Capital Region comprising cities such as Gurgaon and Noida that helped reduced the net rate of migration to Delhi.

He spoke about the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), an initiative of the UPA Government with a contribution of Rs. 50,000 crore from the Centre, that sought an equal contribution from State Governments and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs). This scheme, he said, aimed to encourage capacity building in urban development sector. In order to avail themselves these incentives, the State Governments were encouraged to scrap the Urban Land Ceiling Act, bring down the rates of stamp duty and reform ULBs, he said.

Need for integral plan

In her special address, Kanimozhi, Member of Parliament, said urbanisation was integral to the economic activity and any development without inclusiveness would lead to violence and unhappiness across the world.

She said that about two thirds of the contribution to the GDP came from urban centres. Uncontrolled growth of these centres would put pressure on infrastructure and burden their capacity. Hence, it was important to have an integrated regional plan, she said.

R Sellamuthu, Secretary, Housing & Urban Development, Government of Tamil Nadu, said that inclusive growth and holistic plan were important for urban development. Chennai would be made slum-free by 2030, he said. He suggested that the value of the lands where the slums were located had gone up and this could be explored while developing them through private participation.

The CII proposed to the government that a contiguous area 4,756 sq km around Chennai extending up to Pulicat in the north, Marakanam in the south and Arakonam in the west be declared as a new region for urban planning.

Gopal Srinivasan, Chairman, CII, Tamil Nadu, said that this region could increase its contribution to the GDP by 20 times.

T.R.Srinivasan, Vice-Chairman CMDA, said that the proposal for 4,756-sq km region was too large and included about five districts. This would not be viable and needed to be scaled down.

Vikram Kapur, managing director and chief executive officer, TNUDF, cautioned that such regional plans must not be Chennai-centric. Instead, they must focus on the many urban centres in the region and take the local bodies on board, he suggested.

Tamil Nadu Industries Secretary M.F. Farooqui reminded that land acquisition for development would not be a problem as long as fair value was provided.

In his theme address, G R K Reddy, Chairman, Infra 2007 and Vice-Chairman, Chennai Zone, said the population of Chennai would reach 10 million in the next ten years. It was important to increase investment in creating affordable houses and upgrade the skill of people from tier II cities that would help their employment, he said.

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