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U.P. schemes for urban centres

Photo: Subir Roy

So many stones: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati looking at the foundation stones of various schemes she launched in Lucknow on Thursday.

LUCKNOW: Chief Minister Mayawati on Thursday laid the foundation stones for urban re-generation projects worth Rs.4,000 crore for development of Lucknow, Kanpur, Ayodhya, Faizabad, Allahabad, Meerut and Bithoor.

The schemes pertain to improvement of power supply, drainage, sewerage, drinking water, roads, transport and parking facilities. State Capital Lucknow has benefited the most with projects costing about Rs.2,400 crore, followed by Kanpur and Bithoor (Rs.500 crore), Allahabad (Rs. 400 crore), Meerut (Rs. 400 crore) and Faizabad and Ayodhya (Rs. 115 crore).

Launching the projects, the Chief Minister said the schemes had been initiated keeping in mind the projected population of Uttar Pradesh in 2040. While the urban population and the area under cities and towns has increased considerably over the past 60 years since Independence, the civic facilities have not matched the growth in urban population. Even power supply, condition of roads, transport, parking facilities and hospitals are insufficient to cater to the needs of the people, she said. The Chief Minister said the lack of civic facilities had impacted the people in a big way, with the poor the worst sufferers.

Describing the civic facilities as insufficient to cater to the needs of the people, the Chief Minister said without improvement in drainage and roads and availability of safe drinking water urban re-generation was virtually impossible. She accused the previous regimes in Uttar Pradesh of ignoring the development of basic facilities for the people and added that urban re-generation has been accorded top priority now by the Bahujan Samaj Party Government. Special schemes have been launched for the development of historic and cultural sites like Bithoor and Ayodhya, she added.

Ms. Mayawati has authorised State Chief Secretary Atul Kumar Gupta to conduct a periodic review of the schemes launched on Thursday.

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