28 more cities to be brought under urban development scheme

September 25th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government will build bus rapid transit (BRT) systems in nine more cities at an investment of Rs.4,500 crore, Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy said here Friday. "We are going to implement BRT in nine more cities with an estimated cost of Rs.4,500 crore under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) project," Reddy said while speaking at a programme here.

September 23rd, 2009 KOLKATA - West Bengal is lagging behind in implementing the projects sanctioned under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNURM) scheme, Union Minister of State for Urban Development Saugata Roy said here Wednesday. "West Bengal and Delhi are lagging behind in (utilising) the fund sanctioned under the schemes of JNURM.

September 12th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India has a whopping 62 million slumdwellers but it aims to be free of shanties through a slew of schemes such as earmarking of 20 percent of developed land in all housing projects for this category, Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Minister Kumari Selja said here Saturday. "When our government first came to power in 2004, we had set out as our priority to cater to the needs of the urban poor.

August 13th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government Thursday said it will set up two major water projects in Mumbai and Chennai at a cost of Rs.2,200 crore aimed at finding a permanent solution to the acute water scarcity in these two metros. "Two mega projects have been sanctioned for two major cities.

July 18th, 2009 PUDUCHERRY - Apart from the earlier proposal to build 1.5 million houses for urban poor, the government will build a million affordable houses for the middle income group, Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Kumari Selja said here Saturday. "Now, we have launched another scheme called Affordable Housing.

July 17th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Housing and Poverty Alleviation Minister Kumari Selja today informed the Lok Sabha that the government is planning to launch a new housing scheme for slum dwellers and urban poor since the scheme is aimed at providing subsidy up to five per cent on a loan of Rs one lakh availed by the poor. "Government proposes to launch 'Rajiv Awas Yojana' in the country for slum dwellers and urban poor.

July 7th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Minister Kumari Selja said on Tuesday that sustainable development needs to be inclusive and different from mere economic development of the past, and its benefits must last well into the next generation, and beyond. Delivering the inaugural address at the launch of Habitat Business Forum in New Delhi, the minister emphasised the role of private sector in contributing towards this cause has to be recognized and promoted on a large scale.

July 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Highlights of the union budget for the current fiscal presented by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in the Lok Sabha Monday: - Agriculture debt waiver extended by six months - Outlay for national rural health mission increased by Rs.2,057 crore from the Rs.12,070 crore provided in the interim budget - Allocation towards National Rural Employment Guarantee Act increased by Rs.39,100 crore - Allocation for Bharat Nirman scheme increased by 45 percent - Rs.20 billion for rural housing - Rural electrification scheme to get Rs.7,000 crore more - Tax department to work on early introduction of Saral 2 forms - Stimulus for print media extended from June 13 to Dec 31 - Rs.1,000 crore to accelerate irrigation projects - Agriculture development fund increased from Rs.2.87 lakh crore to Rs.3.25 lakh crore - Market development assistance scheme for exporters increased by 148 percent to Rs.124 crore - Pre-shipment interest subvention set at 2 percent for textile exporters - Will make sufficient funds for infrastructure development - Allocation for national highways development stepped up by 23 percent - Allocation for urban poor schemes to be raised to Rs.39,730 crore in 2009-10 - LNG infrastructure to be expanded - Allocation for Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission raised by 87 percent to Rs.12,887 crore

July 1st, 2009 NEW DELHI - India's millions of urban poor have reason to cheer. A new housing scheme, Rajiv Awas Yojana, was announced Wednesday promising to improve their lives and aiming to make the country "slum free" in the next five years.

July 1st, 2009 MANILA - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $100-million loan to undertake developmental projects in China's northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, officials said Wednesday. The Xinjiang Urban Transport and Environmental Improvement Project, which will receive the money, will also initiate projects to protect the environment, the bank said.

June 29th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Centre is preparing to provide modern facilities in 28 more cities in addition to the existing 65 cities under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) in the first 100 days of the UPA government. "Infrastructure will also be developed in small and medium towns.

June 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Minister of State for Planning V Narayanasamy today said that the Government is mulling an National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA)-type poverty alleviation programme for the urban poor. Talking to reporters after taking over the charge of the Ministry, Narayanasamy said that the government is planning such a scheme for urban poor.

June 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - To boost urban transport under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), states have placed orders for buying 7,815 buses under the one time economic measure of funding of buses by the Ministry of Urban Development. Government has so far sanctioned the purchase of 14,695 buses for the various mission cities under JNNURM.

March 2nd, 2009 AGARTALA - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will invest Rs.13.71 billion for developing urban amenities and solid waste management in the capitals of five under-developed states, officials Sunday said. The ADB-assisted North Eastern Region Urban Development Programme will be implemented over six years and will cover Agartala (Tripura), Shillong (Meghalaya), Aizawl in Mizoram, Kohima (Nagaland) and Gangtok (Sikkim).

February 21st, 2009 NEW DELHI - An internal inquiry committee constituted by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to look into the alleged irregularities in its housing scheme, Friday submitted its report to the urban development ministry. The committee was formed to investigate irregularities during the draw of lots for 5,238 DDA flats on Dec 16, 2008.