Urban development minister S Jaipal Reddy is afraid of going to Parliament as the newly-elected members of the Parliament besiege him and ask for development funds but the ministry hardly has any money to spare.
"I am afraid of going to Parliament as newly-elected MPs want schemes for their cities. When urban development ministers of states want to see me, I avoid them as much as I can," he said in a lighter vein.
He was referring to the sanction of schemes of over Rs 1 lakh crore (Rs 1 trillion) under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission in the last four years which has left the ministry with hardly any funds to sanction now.
The remarks of Reddy at the national conference to mark the fourth anniversary of the JNNURM was meant to highlight the success of the mission, launched four years ago on December 3.
"December 3 is a red letter day in the history of the country's urban development. This is an occasion for some self congratulation and stock taking," he said, pointing out that the flagship programme of the government was not launched because of any political pressure or a felt demand.
He said the JNNURM was conceived by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh whom he described as the 'principal architect' of the mission.
Singh, minister for housing and urban poverty alleviation Kumari Selja, ministers of urban development from the states, mayors from mission cities and officials were present in the conference.
Describing JNNURM as a 'magnificent success', Reddy recalled that initially they were daunted by the magnitude of the project but expressed satisfaction that in four years, schemes worth more than Rs 1 lakh crore (Rs 1 trillion) have been sanctioned.
He said the governemnt took care to see that the schemes relate to basic services and of the total sanctioned funds, more than 90 per cent have been spent on basic services like drinking water, sewerage, solid waste and housing for the urban poor.
The minister said that the government did not 'fall prey' to schemes like flyovers and roads even as it focussed on urban transportation.
Image: S Jaipal Reddy
