ROURKELA: Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) is working towards a slum-free city tag with the civic body putting in place modern amenities for 40 slums located outside of land under jurisdiction of Rourkela Steel Plant, South Eastern Railway and Forest department.Under its redevelopment plan, the municipal corporation has already started construction of roads, drains and other facilities in slums including Ruputola, Kisantola and Khariatola.
RMC sources said composite tenders for development of 22 slums were finalised in two phases and work on all the 22 has begun. Tender process and cost estimation for 18 others are underway. The project will be completed by March next year. The cost of developing the slums depends on their size and on an average `30-35 lakh will be spent on developing each of them. RMC will bear the entire cost of the project.
Former chairman of erstwhile Rourkela Municipality Ramesh Chandra Bal welcomed the move. “But the dream of a slum-free smart city will remain unfulfilled till the slum dwellers are rehabilitated. While some in-situ Pradhan Mantri Awa Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U) houses were constructed in the city in the last few years, not a single dwelling under the scheme was constructed for landless slum dwellers,” he said.
RMC commissioner Dibyajyoti Parida said the slums would be gradually de-notified and such localities will wear a different look.