The Urban Road Infrastructure Development Agency (URIDA) was founded by the urban development department to monitor the construction, funding, and management of roads in municipalities and to give city roadways an international appearance. URIDA will create an Urban Road Management System in addition to building and maintaining roads in urban areas.
Lucknow: To build and maintain roads in the state, the Urban Road Infrastructure Development Agency (URIDA) will establish a “Urban Road Management System”.
The Chief Minister Green Road Infrastructure Development Scheme (Urban), also known as the “CM Grids Scheme,” was recently approved by the Uttar Pradesh government and is worth 500 crores. According to a state government official, the project was started in response to the state’s growing urbanization and the need to ease the strain of extra automobiles on the highways and improve traffic flow.
According to him, the state’s urban development department initiated the initiative at the chief minister’s request in order to supervise the construction, funding, and oversight of roads in municipalities as well as provide city roadways an international appearance.
To carry out the plan locally, the urban development department established the Urban Road Infrastructure Development Agency (URIDA). URIDA will provide an urban road management system in addition to building and maintaining city roads. In addition to enhancing the financial standing of urban local authorities and implementing new technological advancements in road infrastructure, he said, it will also emphasize the creation of resources.
In the Directorate of Local Bodies building in Lucknow, URIDA will open an office. He added that a general body and executive committee under it had also been established to oversee the operations of CM Grids (Urban).
The creation of a “Urban Road Management System” for the development and upkeep of all assets connected to urban roadways would be the primary duties of URIDA. In the area of urban road development and management, it will serve as a think tank, information resource organization, and advisory support. According to him, value capture, which involves the government, municipal bodies, and residents, would also improve the financial health of municipal bodies.
Additionally, URIDA would arrange seminars and training sessions to establish the necessary capacities for the development of road infrastructure in urban bodies. With the aid of research institutions, it would create highways that were both affordable and friendly to the environment. According to him, it would create criteria and norms for CM Grids (Urban) and provide subsidies under the program based on an increase in municipal authorities’ income collection.
‘Road Selection Criteria’ for choosing which roads to construct or reconstruct under CM Grids (Urban) had also been given to it to create and alter. Within six months following the end of each financial year, it would have a chartered accountant examine the CM-Grids (Urban) bank accounts. The chartered accountants would submit the agency with the accuracy certificate of the reconciliation statement of urban local bodies and CM-Grids (Urban) bank accounts, he said.
In order to effectively monitor, evaluate, and review the CM Grids (Urban) scheme and the operational plans for road development carried out by the urban development department, a general body has been established. The additional chief secretary or principal secretary of the urban development department will serve as vice-chairman, with the chief secretary acting as the general body’s chair.
An executive committee has been established to manage the CM Grids (Urban) scheme’s planning, design, tendering, monitoring, and conservation efforts, among other tasks. The head of the urban development department, the additional chief secretary/principal secretary, and the director of the Local Body Directorate will make up the executive committee.
Source- Hindustan times
