VIJAYAWADA: The cash-strapped Vijayawada Municipal Corporation’s (VMC) decision to procure Rs 100 crore loan from the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) for completing the housing project, taken up under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) housing scheme, has been receiving stern opposition from the YSR Congress and the Left parties alike.
However, the decision got approval in the council meeting held recently, after Municipal Commissioner G Veerapandian submitted a proposal to this effect under Section (88) of the Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act-1955. The civic body took this step as it had no option but completing the housing project within the stipulated time. As per norms, it will have to pay penalty to the Centre in case it fails to finish the project by March 2017, said sources.
According to the officials, the VMC is burdened by debt worth Rs 290.74 crore and appears to be struggling finding ways to increase its revenue. Against this backdrop, it decided to take over the unfinished works pertaining to 4,512 JNNURM units in the city at an estimated cost of Rs 100 crore, with the help of HUDCO funds.
As many as 28,152 units were sanctioned under the JNNURM scheme for Vijayawada. The Central government will bear 50 per cent of the total cost, the State government 20 per cent and the VMC 30 per cent. The civic body constructed 18,176 houses and allotted the units to the beneficiaries who contributed 30 per cent of the total amount.
About 4,512 units are yet to be constructed, whereas the remaining houses, which have been lying vacant for the past several years, are in a state of neglect. A total of 2,688 houses are yet to be completed in Ajith Singh Nagar. In Kabela Junction area, 384 houses are at the basement level only. In Jakkampudi Colony, as many as 928 houses are yet to be finished.
Meanwhile, VMC Floor Leader B Punyaseela (YSRC) fumed at civic officials for delaying the housing project. “After failing to complete the housing works in the stipulated time, the VMC officials woke up too late. Now, in the name of completing the project, they are going to borrow additional fund, which will become a burden for the cash-strapped civic body,” she opined.
Reiterating that her party was not against the project, Punyaseela added that they are only pointing out the credibility of VMC officials and the State government. Speaking to Express, city Mayor Koneru Sreedhar said that Corporation wrote a letter to the State government in April this year, seeking sanction of interest-free loan worth Rs 117.92 crore for completing the pending 4,512 JNNURM housing units.