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Urban Planning

Government sanctions Rs 260 crore for GIS mapping

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The Times of India       17.05.2017  

Government sanctions Rs 260 crore for GIS mapping

| Updated: May 17, 2017, 01.27 AM IST
(Representative image)

 

(Representative image)
MUMBAI: The state cabinet on Tuesday sanctioned Rs 260 crore for GIS (Geographic Information System) mapping of all the C and D municipal corporations, councils and nagar panchayats in the state.

The mapping is being done to enable these urban local bodies to earn higher property tax. Currently the amount that is recovered is around Rs 2,000 crore. Once the exercise is completed, the revenue is expected to double.

Principal secretary Manisha Mhaiskar, urban development department, said the decision to carry out GIS mapping was taken some time back by the committee headed by the chief secretary. "The tendering process for appointing the agency to carry out the exercise is underway but no budgetary account had been created to allow the government to spend for this project. Today the cabinet approved the planned expenditure," she said.

 

 

Five-year action plan under Smart City project on cards

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The Hindu      27.01.2017   

Five-year action plan under Smart City project on cards

A five-year action plan is on the anvil as a part of the Smart City project spending Rs. 1,602 crore and the government has released Rs. 349 crore, Municipal Commissioner M. Hari Narayanan has said.

Of the total outlay, the State and Central Governments will foot Rs. 500 crore each and the remaining would be mobilised through other sources, Mr. Harinarayanan said after hoisting the tricolour on Republic Day at the GVMC.

Continuous water supply, underground drainage, complete streets, development of green spaces, underground cabling, measures to prevent beach erosion and development of the beach front were among the smart city proposals.

5th rank

After winning the 8th rank in Smart City race from among 20 cities in the first round and 5th rank in Swachh Bharat survey in 2016, it was making all efforts to get into the top three ranks in 2017, Mr. Hari Narayanan said.

However, competition will be tough as 500 cities were being covered in the 2017 survey, up from 75 cities in 2016.

Unless the staff worked with dedication and people also cooperated the city could not come out in flying colours, the Commissioner said.

Awards for LED project

The efforts of the corporation had been recognised, he said, adding that the city received two awards at the national level for installing the highest number of LED lights and maintaining them, he said.

 

‘Concrete drains prevent groundwater recharge’

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The Hindu     14.07.2016 

‘Concrete drains prevent groundwater recharge’

Mayor says groundwater recharge facility will be put in place across the city

Drawing flak:The box-type concrete drains being built by the Mangaluru City Corporation and the National Highways Authority of India would not allow rainwater to seep into the ground, say experts.— Photo: H.S. Manjunath
Drawing flak:The box-type concrete drains being built by the Mangaluru City Corporation and the National Highways Authority of India would not allow rainwater to seep into the ground, say experts.— Photo: H.S. Manjunath

Even as the Mangaluru City Corporation and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) are busy building concrete box-type drains along major roads in their jurisdiction, civil engineers and rainwater harvesting exponents have questioned the rationale behind the move.

At a time where every inch of urban space is covered with concrete, the rainwater has no space to percolate down to the soil and groundwater is not being recharged. In Mangaluru city, almost every major road is being topped with concrete and shoulder drains are built using concrete-box technology.

Kannada Sahitya Parishat’s Dakshina Kannada district president Pradeep Kumar Kalkura, who is an engineer, said that the concrete box-type drainage was not suitable for areas where water gets percolated down to the ground immediately. It might be suitable in regions with black soil where even a small shower results in water stagnation and creation of water puddles, he said.

Mr. Kalkura told The Hindu that the earlier model of placing granite slabs at the drainage base was most suited for places like Mangaluru. Under that system, the gaps in between granite slabs would have allowed percolation of water, he said. It had twin benefits. On the one hand, it would have recharged the groundwater and on the other, reduced the inflow to storm water drains. “Because of concrete drains, heavy rain will result in flash floods as the rainwater flows at once into major drains. It is unfortunate that the corporation and the NHAI have introduced a system alien to the region,” Mr. Kalkura said. Another view was expressed by rainwater harvesting exponent Shree Padre. According to him, even if concrete drains are built, the authorities should provide soak pits at regular intervals so that the rainwater gets absorbed by the soil.

Mangaluru Mayor Harinath, being aware of adverse effects of box-type drainage, has been insisting that every drain in his ward, Marakada, should have space for rainwater percolation. Mr. Harinath told The Hindu that for every metre of the drain base, he had got installed PVC pipes to facilitate water percolation.

Not only such a move would help vegetation in the surrounding area, but also would recharge the groundwater. Otherwise the excess water flows somewhere, gets stagnated and becomes breeding ground for many diseases, he said.

He has instructed the engineering department to follow the model across the city, the Mayor said.

 


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