Uttarakhand all set to get Rs 500 crore loan for Dehradun smart city project

Tribune News Service

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Dehradun, December 4

Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) Limited, New Delhi, today gave in principle approval to a loan of Rs 500 crore sought by the Uttarakhand government for purchasing 1,200 acres of tea estate land on the Shimla bypass in Dehradun for its smart city project.

HUDCO took up the loan proposal at its internal meeting and decided to give in principle approval to the loan of Rs 500 crore. The Chief Managing Director of HUDCO attended the meeting. “As the Joint Secretary, Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA), and the Secretary, Urban Planning, could not attend the meeting today it was decided to give in principle approval to the loan proposal. On December 11, another meeting will be held to give the go-ahead to the proposal so that Uttarakhand could submit its proposal by the December 15 deadline to the Union Ministry of Urban Development,” said Meenakshi Sundaram, nodal officer for the smart city project and Secretary, Housing.

The Uttarakhand government intends to apply for the loan in phases. In the first phase, a proposal for a loan of Rs 500 crore has been submitted to HUDCO. Later it will pursue the matter depending on the requirement.

AAP registers opposition

Workers of the Aam Aadmi Party on Friday staged a demonstration at the office of Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited (HUDCO) urging the corporation to deny loan to the Mussoorie-Dehradun Development Authority(MDDA) for the smart city project.

Led by district AAP president Omkar Bhatia, AAP protester said the acquisition of tea garden land in Dehradun would adversely impact the region’s environment. He said the smart city project must be opposed tooth and nail. He urged HUDCO not to provide loan to the MDDA for the project.