After failing to execute the Basic Services for Urban Poor (BSUP) projects under the JNNURM scheme,the Kolkata Municipal Corporation has come up with a revised proposal that projects an increase of 120 per cent in the cost. In the revised proposal,the Corporation has pegged the cost of the project at Rs 283 crore. In the previous proposal,the cost of the project was estimated at Rs 121 crore and was supposed to be completed within 18 months from July 19,2007. According to the Corporation,the increase in the project cost is due to local resistance,non-availability of land,poor quality of soil and the hike in material cost. The state government will soon send the revised proposal to the Centre. The Opposition has already termed the revised proposal as non-transparent. It has not been mentioned in the proposal what led to a sharp increase in the project cost. We will raise the issue in the next session of the Assembly, said Javed Ahmed Khan,Leader of the Opposition. The BSUP project was sanctioned in two phases. In the first phase,the Corporation was supposed to construct 6,480 dwelling units in Rajarhat,Hatgachia and Kacharipara. Currently,the Corporation has only started work in Rajarhat. Atin Ghosh,Chairman of Municipal Accounts,said: The cost of the materials needed for a construction has not increased compared to the hike projected in the revised proposal. The cost of iron plies was Rs 36,000-38,000 per tonne in 2007 when the earlier proposal was drafted. In 2009,the cost of the iron plies remains the same. There is a slight increase in the cost of cement. The price of cement was 4,600 per tonne in 2007 while in 2009 the cost of cement is 5,400 per tonne. Apart from these materials,there is no such significant increase in the price of other materials, added Ghosh. An increase of 120 per cent in a single project is absurd. The Centre would never bear the escalated cost until and unless the state explained the reasons behind the increase, said an official of the Ministry of Urban Development. If the project was put on hold due to local resistance and non-availability of land,then it is the states concern. Centre will not bear the extra financial burden, added the official. Our projects have suffered serious resistance for which we had to hold the projects for a year. The material costs have also increased. We will send the revised proposal to the Centre for approval. It is impossible for the Corporation to bear the huge cost of the project, said Mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya. Sougata Ray,Minister of State for Urban Development,however,said: The state failed in implementing most of the JNNURM projects. The120 per cent increase is absurd. If the state fails to explain what led to the cost escalation,then there is a probability that the Centre might drop the entire project.
