KOCHI: The Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to be formed for implementing the smart city project in Kochi will not encroach upon the authority and powers of the local body, says Smart City mission director Mohammad Hanish.
“The apprehensions in this regard is completely baseless”, he told DC on Sunday.
Mr. Hanish made comments even as the Kochi Mayor made complaints to various authorities in the state government.
“Mayor should not be complaining to the state government or its officials about the SPV. The structure and power of the proposed SPV has been decided by the Central Government and the state government or the local body cannot hope to tinker with it. The principles of the SPV will be the same in all over the country and a local body here cannot hope gain any exceptions now,” he said referring to a letter written by Soumini Jain to state government.
Mr. Haneesh also said that Kochi Corporation and the proposed SPV are not at loggerheads with each other in the day-to-day functioning.
Playing down, he said: “Smart City is a mission-mode project confined to certain specified tasks and that need not to have any conflicts with the urban local body”.
The guidelines issued by the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) clearly stipulate that the SPV will be having complete administrative and financial control connected with the implementation of the project.
Mr. Haneesh said that the Smart City Mission in the state is on the process of forming the SPV.
“We have received the guidelines from the MoUD and now the state government will have to issue the necessary order”, he said.
The government has taken an in-principle decision to appoint an IAS officer as the Chief Executive Officer of the SPV, he added.
