Danapur cluster, comprising two gram panchayats – Danapur and Kallahalli in Hosapete taluk of Ballari district, would be developed with economic, social and physical infrastructure facilities under the pilot project of RURBAN, proposed under Shama Prasad Mukherjee Urban Mission.
Danapur cluster was among 300 clusters selected across the country and one of three in the State under Phase 1 of the project. It covers ten villages under the jurisdiction of Danapur and Kallahalli GPs, with a population of 16,354 with 3,890 households (as per the 2011 census) with the tribal community more in number. The project aims to cover twelve development components/parameters, of which infrastructure – mainly roads and drainages, education, skill development, electrification, water and sanitation are the prime components and reduce the burden on the urban areas and prevent migration to the maximum possible extent.
A detailed project report (DPR), with the cost estimate of ₹52.47 crore has been prepared by the Ballari Zilla Panchayat and forwarded to the State government for its approval. It will be sent to the Union government for a green signal.
Critical gap funding
Under the project, the State government has to implement the scheme by way of convergence of various existing schemes and the Union government will release the balance amount, called ‘critical gap funding’. Under convergence, the ZP has identified works to the tune of ₹36.73 crore. It expects the critical gap funding to the tune of ₹15.74 crores from the Centre.
Infrastructure facilities
“The project aims at providing all infrastructure facilities in the cluster that are available in the urban areas, including skill development training. Agricultural services and processing, water supply, solid and liquid waste management, sanitation, health, education, forest, among other things, so that the cluster economic development is stimulated, enhance basic services to develop the culster on par with the adjacent urban area (Hosapete) and reduce the pressure to the extent possible,” K.V. Rajendra, Chief Executive Officer, ZP, told The Hindu.
Three more taluks
“The DPR has been cleared by the Principal Secretary at the State-level and is awaiting the green signal from the Union government, which has already released ₹4.5 crore. We hope to commence the work of implementation of the project during the second or third week of this month,” he said, and added that three more taluks – Ballari, Sandur and Hadagali, with higher tribal populations, have also been chosen in the third phase of the project.
