KASHIRAM RANA ADDRESSES MEETING
OF GENERAL COUNCIL OF CENTRE ON INTEGRATED RURAL DEVELOPMENT FOR
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC AT JAKARTA
Sustainable Rural
Development requires not only individual efforts of the countries
but also cooperation between and among countries on issues which
are of common concern. Addressing meeting of General Council of
Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific
(CIRDAP) in Jakarta today, Shri Kashiram Rana Union Minister for
Rural Development further said that rural Roads are vital to economic
growth and a measure for poverty alleviation in the villages,
Government has launched a massive programme for rural roads as
the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in December, 2000.
The World Bank and
the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have agreed to extend loans for
the PMGSY. The first tranche of the World Bank loan is likely
to be of the order of $300 million (Rs.1500 crore) and ADB loan
would be of the order of $ 400 million (Rs.2000 crore). The ADB
Appraisal Mission has indicated November 2003 as the likely date
for signing the agreement for loan.
Highlighting the
achievements of the Ministry, Shri Rana said during the last five
years new watershed projects have been taken up in 14 million
hectares of wasteland/degraded land. A new initiative Hariyali
was launched in January 2003 under which these watershed development
programmes would be implemented through Panchayati Raj Institutions.
Listing out new initiatives
taken by the Ministry for Rural Development, in drinking water,
housing and sanitation sectors. Shri Rana said the Department
of Drinking Water has been mandated to provide potable drinking
water to all villages by the year 2004. 56 lakh rural houses have
been constructed during the last 5 years with an investment of
about Rs.108 billion. During the previous year, against the target
of 13,14,431 houses at a cost of Rs.220743 lakhs, 15,37,646 houses
were constructed at a cost of Rs.217098 lakhs. During the current
year, a target of 14,84,554 houses at a cost of Rs.249275 lakh
is fixed.
Shri Rana informed
under self employment programme namely Swaranjayanti Gram Swarozgar
Yojana (SGSY) upto now, 1.50 million Self Help Groups have been
mobilized and about 4 million swarozgaris have been assisted with
an investment of Rs.75 billion.
