CM meets Gadkari, demands early approval for ring roads

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 27

Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh today sought early clearance of ring roads around Punjab’s major cities in his first meeting with Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari since the new central government assumed charge.

He demanded the release of the third installment of Central grants of Rs 3.72 crore for Mohali Hitech Metal Cluster and implementation of SFURTI in Wood Inlay Cluster of Hoshiarpur, besides inviting Gadkari to visit the state and help revive its micro, small and medium enterprises sector.

The meeting, Capt Amarinder said, was positive with Gadkari assuring all help.

The CM’s official spokesperson said Capt Amarinder informed Gadkari of the state’s consent to bear 50 pc cost of land acquisition for the construction of ring roads around Mohali/Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Patiala, Sangrur and Bathinda under the Bharatmala project. The CM said the ministry had already approved the ring road around Bathinda.

“The CM urged the minister to aid expeditious clearance of the Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway project for which the Centre had approved 800-km of expressways plan under Bharatmala Scheme Phase-I. The CM told the minister that the alignment for this project had not been frozen,” a spokesman for the CM said.

Wants Paswan to resolve food loan

New Delhi: Food and Public Distribution Minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Thursday agreed to Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh's suggestion for a joint meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to resolve the state's Rs 31,000-crore food account loan issue.

Capt met Paswan here on Thursday and sought urgent reconciliation of the loan amount ahead of Union Budget this July 5.

The CM’s spokesman said Paswan also agreed to let Punjab create additional storage space to address storage challenges in Rabi season and succeeded in securing relaxation in lustre loss in wheat resulting from unseasonal heavy rains that lashed Punjab this season. — TNS