4,000 km village roads to be improved

Chennai: As roads in villages help transform the economic condition of people living there, the state government will take up improvement of 4,000 km stretch of rural roads under the Tamil Nadu Rural Roads Development Scheme at a cost of Rs 800 crore this year.

Making a suo motu statement under Rule 110 in the state Assembly on Thursday, Chief Minister Ms J. Jayalalithaa said that the state would take up works on 41 bridges at a cost of Rs 50 crore with funding from Nabard.

“In addition to these, I am happy to announce that Rs 200 crore will be allocated for the maintenance of rural roads,” she said.

The Chief Minister also said that works at a cost of Rs 375 crore would be carried out to improve basic facilities in rural areas, including roads, bridges, panchayat union buildings and village panchayat office buildings.

The state will allocate Rs 1,475 crore for all infrastructure development projects, including roads, bridges and other amenities in rural areas this year.

Pointing out that the AIADMK government had launched “Tamil Nadu Village Habitations Improvement (THAI)” scheme from 2011-12 to fulfil basic needs of villages, Ms Jayalalithaa said that steps would be taken to lay cement paver blocks in streets in interior rural areas.

“These blocks will not only beautify the streets, besides help water to percolate into ground to recharge ground water. This scheme will be implemented on 400 km roads at an expense of Rs 120 crore,” she added.

In a bid to ensure that all people living in villages get government services such as birth/death certificates, income certificates and old age pensions,

the state government has decided to implement e-services through e-seva kendras in 3,890 villages at a cost of Rs 661.30 crore in 2015-16.