'Projects worth Rs 3626 crore identified for Haridwar Kumbh'

DEHRADUN: The Uttarakhand government has identified projects worth Rs 3626 crore to be executed for the Maha Kumbh mela to be held in Haridwar in 2021.


State urban development minister and government spokesperson Madan Kaushik who is also the Haridwar MLA, told TOI that last week, the state government had asked the departments like police, PWD, irrigation and power to give estimates for the works to be taken up in Haridwar district for the Maha Kumbh.

Based on the estimates, the state government identified the areas where maximum investments are to be made. “As per the tentative breakup, around 25 % of the funds are to be deployed for PWD, 20 % each for the police and irrigation departments while the rest would be divided among other departments like Jal Nigam, power and civic agencies,” Kaushik said.

Notably, in June, CM Trivendra Rawat had met finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Delhi and asked for central assistance of Rs 5,000 crore for the Kumbh mela.

Giving out the rationale for the requirement of such a large sum, Kaushik said, “Unlike the Prayag Kumbh where the main emphasis was on setting up tented colonies for over 10 lakh visitors along the Ganga river, we in Haridwar don’t need that kind of set up because there are already scores of ashrams here for pilgrims to stay. Instead, we require funds for building infrastructure assets like roads, flyovers, bridges and buildings.”

Sources said that in 2016, the central government had given Rs 100 crore for organising the Ardh Kumbh while the state government had arranged Rs 327 crore on its own.

An official from the irrigation department said that the department has planned works related to capacity augmentation of the existing infrastructure in Haridwar and nearby areas. “The main works include the building of Ganga Path Marine Drive which would be used by visitors during the Maha Kumbh. We would also be focusing on road construction, building and beautification of bathing ghats, and sprucing up of the walking tracks in the Mela ground,” said the official.

The tourism department meanwhile has plans to construct toilet complexes in Haridwar while the power department has plans to rev up transformers, sub-stations and laying of underground supply lines.