A major step has been taken towards improving the facilities of the common people and strengthening the infrastructure in Uttarakhand. Important development projects worth about Rs 38 crore were approved in the meeting of the Empowered Finance Committee chaired by Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan. With this decision, the problem of traffic jam in the capital Dehradun will be reduced, travel to Mussoorie will become safe and drinking water crisis in Pithoragarh will be resolved.
In this high level meeting held at the Secretariat, many schemes to roads, bridges and drinking water were approved. However, the meeting also saw the Chief Secretary’s tough stance on misuse of government funds, when he raised questions on the huge budget of Ramnagar Bus Terminal.
The biggest relief news for the residents of the capital Dehradun is regarding New Cantt Road. The committee has approved the proposal to upgrade the stretch from Dilaram Bazaar to Vijay Colony Bridge from two lanes to three lanes. This work is under Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF). Rs 1257.96 lakh Will be spent.
The special thing about this project is that not only the road will be widened, but electricity and drinking water lines will also be arranged keeping the future in mind. All power lines will be shifted to underground utility ducts so that there is no need to dig the road for any work in future.
Apart from this, another big decision was taken for the tourists and local people visiting Mussoorie. Now a modern two-lane bridge will be built in place of the old and dilapidated single-lane bridge located near Sahaspur on Mussoorie State Highway-1. Rs 1200.17 lakh This 60 meter long ‘Steel Box Bridge’, to be built at a cost of Rs. 10,000, will be as per Class-A loading standards, which will make the journey safe and smooth.
An important decision was also taken to overcome the water shortage in hilly areas. In the meeting for the Ghat Pumping Drinking Water Scheme of Pithoragarh. Rs 1338.53 lakh The amount was approved. With this budget, the years old and damaged main pipeline (Rising Main) will be completely replaced. This step will not only prevent wastage of water, but will also ensure regular and clean drinking water supply to thousands of people in the area.
In the meeting, while on one hand development works were approved, on the other hand Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan took a strong stand on negligence in spending government funds. In the revised budget of Ramnagar Bus Terminal, it was found that a major part of the total cost of the project was being spent only on works like site development and foundation filling.
Expressing deep displeasure over this, the Chief Secretary immediately stopped the proposal. He said bluntly, “There should be complete transparency in the expenditure of public money. The budget will not be passed blindly on the basis of any consultant’s report.”
The Chief Secretary has directed the head of the Public Works Department (PWD) and the MD of the Drinking Water Corporation to form an expert committee to examine the practicality of this huge expenditure and submit a detailed report. He made it clear that in future no proposal should be brought before the committee without examining it on the basis of public interest.
