Gandhinagar, Sep 12 (IANS) : Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Saturday said that no development project would be allowed to remain stalled for want of funds, as he announced a fresh package of Rs 48.26 crore for traffic, road and urban infrastructure in the state capital.
Speaking at a programme where development works worth Rs 1,848 crore were inaugurated or launched, Patel said Gujarat’s financial management had ensured that funds were available for development.
“The government is committed to ensuring that no development work is stalled due to lack of funds,” he said.
The Chief Minister said the Rs 1,848 crore package comprised Rs 798 crore of works undertaken by the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation and Rs 1,050 crore under the Roads and Buildings Department.
He urged citizens to communicate local requirements and pending works to the municipal corporation so that necessary projects could be taken up quickly and conveyed to the government.
“The Centre and state government had consistently pursued development by keeping the common man and the last-mile citizen at the centre,” he said.
Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Gujarat, he said the state had received development projects worth more than Rs 34,000 crore from Vadodara.
“The Prime Minister’s work mantra was ‘Nagrik Devo Bhava’ and the trust placed by people in the government over the past 25 years had been repaid through public welfare and development. The government had sought to keep the common citizen, poor and last-mile resident, at the centre of every scheme and project,” he noted.
Patel stressed that creating welfare schemes is not enough and that their benefits had to reach every eligible beneficiary.
“Under the ‘saturation’ approach being pursued under the Prime Minister’s guidance, efforts were being made to ensure 100 per cent coverage of eligible beneficiaries,” he asserted.
He cited Ayushman, housing and Ujjwala schemes and tap water connections among the benefits being delivered to citizens, adding that “the government is proactively reaching beneficiaries instead of waiting for them to approach it.”
He said development processes in Gandhinagar had previously been slow, with even small projects requiring lengthy waits. “The situation had changed with development works worth crores now being implemented rapidly in the municipal corporation area,” he added.
The Chief Minister also referred to GIFT City, saying that while several people had once expressed surprise at the idea, it had now emerged as a global financial hub.
Patel said environmental protection had been given importance alongside development under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. “Sustainable development cannot take place at the cost of the environment,” he said.
He said tree plantation, interlinking of lakes, filling lakes with water and recharge borewells were being undertaken to promote environmental protection and water conservation. Library facilities were also being extended to villages.
“Wherever there is a library, knowledge grows, and where knowledge grows, the pace of development also increases,” he said.
The Chief Minister said the new Gandhinagar works would strengthen traffic and urban facilities.
He announced Rs 20.76 crore for an underpass at Bhat-Koteshwar Crossing, Rs 12.80 crore for strengthening the Sabarmati bridge from Raksha Shakti Circle towards GIFT City-Shahpur, Rs 7.70 crore for junction and road development from GIFT City towards PDPU and Rs 7 crore for road safety and paver works between Raksha Shakti Circle and GIFT City Circle.
He also participated in the flagging off of around 30 new e-buses under the ‘PM-eBus Sewa’ and travelled in one of them with Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, MLAs, the mayor and municipal office-bearers.
