Chief Minister seeks Central funds for metro rail

Chennai: Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam on Friday urged the Union finance ministry to release funds for interlinking of rivers and to set up new desalination plants near Chennai. He also sought release of over Rs3,253 crore to extend the ongoing metro rail work. In his address at the pre-budget meeting of states convened by Union finance minister Arun Jaitley in New Delhi, Chief Minister Panneerselvam put forth the demands of  his state and sought the Centre’s approval of Rs1,371.86 crore for sea water desalination plants with a capacity of 150 MLD (million litres a day) to address Chennai’s growing drinking water requirement.

He also insisted that the Chennai Metro Rail Project, a joint venture of the Centre and state, was awaiting funds for the extension of Corridor-I extending up to Thiruvottriyur and Wimco Nagar, covering a distance of 9.051 km. “An estimated cost of Rs3,253 crore is pending for approval and the state hopes to see an announcement on the extension in Budget 2015-2016,” the Chief Minister said.

Heaping praise on Vajpayee led NDA government for its concept of inter linking rivers, he urged the Centre to take forward the scheme and give due priority to the peninsular river linkage project with adequate budgetary support. “The project for linking Cauvery, Vaigai and Gundar rivers at a cost of Rs 5,166 crores is pending for the Central Government’s approval. We look forward to its inclusion in the Union Budget,” Panneerselvam added.    

CM seeks more smart cities in Tamil Nadu

Chief Minister Panneerselvam pointed out that the Centre had announced development of ‘100 Smart Cities’, with an outlay of Rs 7,060 crore in the budget 2014-2015, but the state was yet to see any clear way forward on this.“Growing cities in Tamil Nadu like Salem, Tiruchy, Thoothukudi, Cuddalore and Erode have the right credentials for consideration as Smart Cities apart from Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai. At least 10 cities in Tamil Nadu are fully eligible to be declared as smart cities”, he said in his address at the pre-budget meeting of states convened by Union finance minister Arun Jaitley in New Delhi  

The Chief Minister, who also holds the state finance ministry portfolio, lauded the Centre for its effort to boost economy and pointed out that the new Central government had faced the major challenge of putting a battered economy with high inflation and low growth on to a high growth trajectory.