The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Pucca roads, drains in SC, ST colonies under NREGA

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Wednesday, Apr 06, 2011
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Pucca roads, drains in SC, ST colonies under NREGA

Special Correspondent

Convergence between NREGA and ACDP to benefit 1,500 ST/ST habitations spread over 22 districts

HYDERABAD: The inclusion of rural connectivity as one of the permissible categories of works under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) will be a boon for rural development in the State, said Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy here on Tuesday. The convergence between the NREGA and the Assembly Constituency Development Programme (ACDP), will facilitate providing all-weather connectivity to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other remote habitations, including pucca internal roads in the SC/ST habitations.

Officials of the Rural Development department informed the Chief Minister that the convergence would benefit 1,500 ST/ST habitations spread over 22 districts in the State at a total cost of Rs.1,000 crore during 2011-12.

Public assets

This project would ensure that the State, apart from being the highest user of NREGA funds, would be able to create durable public assets in the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes colonies and aid their development.

Better hygiene

Mr. Reddy hoped that construction of concrete drains in the low-lying Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes colonies would improve overall hygienic conditions of the areas and prevent outbreak of diseases like malaria, cholera and diarrhoea in these areas.

Gram panchayats had been requesting the government to sanction all-weather rural connectivity to hygienic conditions localities by allowing convergence with other developments' programmes. They had proposed to implement the internal roads in the localities by completing formation, gravelling, and single-layer metalling along with the pucca drains with NREGA funds, and later take up such roads for cement concrete from constituency development funds. Such a facility would transform the Dalit colonies for the better.

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