Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka today met Urban Development Minister M.Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi and held wide ranging discussions on various urban development and housing schemes being launched by the central government.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N.Chandrababu Naidu enquired about the broad contours of the Smart Cities and AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) and the criteria for selection of cities to be included under these two missions. Venkaiah Naidu explained that each state would be assigned a specific number of cities and towns to be nominated by respective states based on the urban population and number of cities and towns in each state for inclusion in Smart Cities Mission. Under AMRUT, cities and towns each with a population of one lakh and above will be selected for addressing infrastructure gaps.
Chandrababu Naidu emphasized that further to bifurcation, Andhra Pradesh needs special consideration and support in its developmental efforts. He said that as per the norms, more areas in the State would be notified as urban areas to benefit from the central government’s initiatives.
Venkaiah Naidu also informed the Chief Minister of the initiative of his Ministry to enable submission of applications online for construction of individual household toilets by the beneficiaries besides online monitoring of the progress. The Chief Minister said that he will instruct the concerned officials to take advantage of this online mechanism for speedy implementation of Swachh Bharat Mission in the state.
Venkaiah Naidu discussed implementation of Swachh Bharat Mission in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh with the Chief Ministers and urged them to personally monitor implementation construction of toilets to meet the targets. (NSS)
