Base laid for ISDP housing project at Lower Mawprem
By Our Reporter
Shillong: Chief Minister Dr Mukul Sangma on Saturday expressed concern over the ever-increasing migration from rural to urban areas in the State, which according to him has resulted in unregulated urban growth.
Citing the reason which has led to this urban migration, the Chief Minister said that people were compelled to migrate to urban areas in the absence of proper educational institutions and health care facilities in rural areas of the State.
“People in the rural areas are also being denied proper amenities. There are also not enough opportunities for the people in the rural areas to eke out their living,” Dr Sangma said before laying the foundation stone of a housing project under the Integrated Slum Development Programme (ISDP) at Lower Mawprem on Saturday.
He said that the State Government is geared up to tackle the problem on a mission mode by developing the rural areas aggressively and by creating sustainable
employment opportunities in the rural areas.
“We would also take all possible steps to see that people from the rural areas are able to access basic amenities at par with people in the urban areas,” the Chief Minister added.
While dwelling on the Integrated Slum Development Programme (ISDP) which falls under the JNNURM, he said that the Centre has come up with this flagship programme to provide dwelling houses for those families belonging to the economically weaker sections of the society.
“The Centre has come up with this programme to see that all cities in the country become slum free,” the Chief Minister said, while adding that through this programme, the Central Government is also looking to address the various problems of deficiencies in basic amenities like water supply, solid waste management and sanitation among the slum dwellers.
Meanwhile, Urban Affairs Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh informed that the housing project at Lower Mawprem will consist of 48 dwelling units in an area of 9900 square feet with necessary infrastructure to be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 1.77 crore.
Besides this project, Ampareen informed that four more ISDP projects would also come up at Mawbah (Barapathar), Pynthorumkhrah, Demseiniong and Kynjat Phutbal. The Centre has sanctioned a total amount of Rs 21.30 crore for the five ISDP housing projects.
She also informed that the remaining four projects would be launched after finalisation of the agreement of the land which have been identified for the projects in the selected localities.
“We are presently facing problems with land acquisition for the project at Kynjat Phutbal since the land falls under the Social Forestry,” the Urban Affairs Minister said.
She also indicated that if they failed to acquire the land at Kynjat Phutbal, then the Government would consider shifting the proposed project to the new Shillong town-ship at Mawdiangdiang.
Ampareen also declined to comment on the delay in launching the projects which had been sanctioned in January 2008, saying that she had taken over the department only about three months back.
Local legislator and former Urban Affairs Minister Paul Lyngdoh said that the people from the area belonging to the lower income group would largely benefit from the housing project.
It may be noted that the housing project is being implemented by Hindustan Prefab Limited (HPL).