Model township for BPL families soon, says Mayor

GHMC to provide basic facilities for them at Abdullapurmet

TAKING STOCK:Mayor Banda Kartika Reddy at the JNNURM housing colony in Abdullapurmet on Friday. Photo: G. Krishnaswamy

The GHMC has decided to transform the upcoming housing colony developed for Below Poverty Line (BPL) families at Abdullapurmet into a model township.

Developed on 45 acres, the GHMC has promised to provide an exclusive commercial complex, playground, school and community hall in the colony. In addition to this, a police outpost, bus shelter and a clinic for will also be ensured before the inauguration of the colony soon.

Planting saplings

Plans have also been chalked out to plant a sapling in the name of every occupant to develop greenery. A board will be installed at the main entrance displaying block and street numbers along with the name of the occupant to help visitors.

The Collector will also be requested to earmark five acres for a graveyard.

“We want to develop the housing colony into a model township with all basic facilities,” Mayor Banda Kartika Reddy told reporters after inspecting the colony on Friday.

GHMC constructed 4,808 houses out of 4,992 sanctioned under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) funds. The houses were constructed in 208 blocks with 24 flats in each block. The estimated cost of the each unit is Rs.1 lakh and the houses were allotted to BPL families.

The approach road connecting the colony and Vijayawada highway is an added advantage to reach Outer Ring Road (ORR), 3 km away.

GHMC Commissioner Sameer Sarma explained that necessary measures were taken up in coordination with the Ground Water Department to provide better water facility. “We will also try to provide Krishna water to occupants,” he said.

CPI(M) demand

Meanwhile, the CPI (M) Hyderabad unit, has sought extension of the last date for regularisation of lands beyond June 30 and an enquiry into irregular regularisations of government land.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, the party's city unit leaders -- P.S.N Murthy and M. Srinivas -- pointed out that over 19,000 applications for land regularisation were pending and little attempt was being made by the government to regularise lands occupied by the poor people.

While land below 80 square yards would be regularised without any penal fee, land between 81 and 2,000 sq yards would be regularised by collecting penal amount. “However, of the 1,400 cleared applications, many were below 80 sq yards and despite this the penal amount was collected,” he alleged.