What Assam has in store for its urban development?

GUWAHATI: On Thursday, February 10, Chief Minister of Assam Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma convened a meeting to advance the Government of Assam’s goal of making life easier for the Guwahati people, and several significant decisions were made. Building construction bye-laws, transportation and a mobility strategy for Guwahati city, waste disposal plan, and the Brahmaputra Riverfront Development project were all discussed at the meeting with officials from the Housing & Urban Affairs Department, Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority, and Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC).

CM Sarma asked the Housing & Urban Affairs Department to adopt common building bye-laws for the entire state under the ‘Mukhyamantri Sahaj Griha Nirman Achoni’ after hearing the presentations on the initiatives. Dr Sarma has asked the authorities to implement approval for building construction via an online portal. The system will be managed centrally, but revenue will be collected by local governments, he said.

To eliminate all types of misconduct while issuing building licenses, the Chief Minister directed that a 10 per cent sample verification be conducted against the permissions provided for building construction. The Chief Minister also reviewed measures to prevent overlapping duties from affecting resource allocation and accountability, as well as the process for the city’s multi-modal and integrated transportation system.

A Unified Metropolitan Transportation Authority for the city, as well as a comprehensive mobility strategy and improved city bus service, were also discussed. This is in line with the state government’s plans to implement a multi-modal transportation system that will benefit citizens. He instructed the GMC to create more garbage dumping sites, in addition to adopting innovative waste disposal methods, to maintain hygiene and cleanliness in the city.

During the meeting, there were also discussions about the Brahmaputra Riverfront Development project implementation. There were several officials in attendance, including Ashok Singhal, Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of Assam; Narayan Deka, Chairman, GMDA; Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Samir Kumar Sinha, and others.