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| Separate development of capital cities only way out | | | | When Chief Minister favoured allocation of separate funds for the development of capital cities of Srinagar and Jammu she was simply voicing concern over the speedy expansion of the twin cities without development of basic facilities.She is right when she expresses concern over the way the twin cities have been choked by congestion,lack of parking lots,and usual traffic jams.She is right when she feels concerned over proper development of the two cities which may be included in the national scheme of smart cities.But till the time the two cities are part of national plan of developing the twin cities as smart cities the Government needs to allocate higher amount of funds for the proper development of the cities.In fact while Srinagar city is home for several lakh tourists and an equal number of Amarnath pilgrims,the city of Jammu is the first halt for several lakh pilgrims to Mata Vaishno Devi.This way the demand for or the suggestion for proper development of the two cities is genuine. Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti has mooted separate development plans for Srinagar and Jammu districts, keeping in view the requirement for additional funds.There is a need to shift to Capital City Plans as funding under district plans has largely been incommensurate with the rapidly-expanding boundaries of Srinagar and Jammu cities.After deliberating for nearly six hours, the DDB headed by the chief minister, approved an Annual CAPEX Budget of Rs 100.29 crore for the year 2016-17. In her maiden address as Chairman of DDB Srinagar, the chief minister said the summer capital will continue to receive focused attention vis-à-vis proper sewerage and drainage network, restoration of encroached public spaces to de-congest the city centre, improving connectivity by way of upgradation of roads, fortifying embankments and dredging of river Jhelum so that the destruction inflicted by 2014 floods is not repeated. The chief minister said in view of the limited working season in Kashmir valley, work in night shifts on ongoing projects where adequate funding is available should be explored by the concerned executing agencies. Referring to the decision to hold all DDB meetings ahead of the Annual Budget session, Mehbooba said this will enable the government to allocate funds for some of the genuine demands raised by the legislators. The Government is aware of the bane of rising population of capital cities and the corresponding requirement of better amenities, the chief minister said de-linking Srinagar and Jammu from District Plan funding pattern will go a long way in addressing the concerns of the people. She directed the Finance Minister to devise a mechanism for conceiving separate Development Plans by taking into consideration the specific needs and demands of both the capital cities.The emphasis on development of Srinagar and Jammu cities indicates that the state Government is still apprehensive of the plan of the centre to develop one to two cities in each state as smart cities.The state of Jammu and Kashmir has a peculiar history and topography.This is the only state which has twin capitals,during summer months the Durbar remains open in Srinagar and during the winter months the offices,including the civil secretariat remain open in Jammu.This calls for including bothSrinagar and Jammu in the list of smart cities plan.Well the state Chief Minister is right.She cannot wait for the nod from the centre and whatever funds are available with the state Government should be utilized on developing the two cities on a modern scale. |
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