KOCHI: While neighbouring states stand to bag mega projects under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission(JNNURM) transition phase, Kerala has reportedly had all its projects turned down by the Centre.
Both the Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram corporations have failed to get the approval of the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee (CSMC) for projects submitted, according to sources. Unhappy civic experts blame it on lapses in their detailed project reports (DPR).
Going by sources, not even one of the seven projects of the Kochi corporation was forwarded to the CSMC for clearance after technical vetting by the National Buildings Construction Corporation Ltd.
The projects included a pedestrian friendly urban transport system (Rupees 55. 10 crore), surface water drainage project for east Kochi (Rupees 40 crore), upgrading surface water drainage in west Kochi (50 crore), improving inland water transport system, development of public markets (Rupees 32.68 crore), revamping of the Broadway heritage area (Rupees 25 crore) and renewing the Ernakulam market (Rupees 15 crore).
“It is unfortunate that not even one project was approved under the transition phase. Their fate is now uncertain as one doesn’t know whether the new government at the Centre will continue with JNNURM or not,” said a top corporation official.
However, refuting the allegations, JNNURM cell officers claimed the projects could not be processed further due to the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections and would be taken up once they were completed. “The corporation has put in all effort to see that the projects are sanctioned,” they insisted.
While the projects submitted by the Thiruvananthapuram corporation also failed to get past technical vetting, its officers tried to downplay the issue as well ,saying, “The projects were not rejected. We’ve been merely asked to submit revised proposals.” The four project proposals submitted for '1334 crore related to solid waste management, sewage treatment, ponds’ restoration and restoration of the Parvathy Puthanar.
