Haryana to spend Rs 370 cr on 87 model villages

Chandigarh, Jan 22 (UNI) The Haryana government is developing 87 'Model Villages' across the state with a planned expenditure of Rs 370 crore, official sources said.

Work was already in progress in 69 of these villages for all round development, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said while reviewing the projects being undertaken by Development and Panchayats Department.

The Chief Minister directed the departments concerned like Water Supply and Sanitation, Education, Women and Child Development, Agriculture, Health, Animal Husbandry, Forests and Development and Panchayats to identify gaps in the facilities being provided in these villages and take remedial measures.

In the meeting, it was disclosed that concrete pavements were being provided in 'Phirnis' (mud lanes) and other wide or main streets wherever demanded by village panchayat.

On these development projects Rs 43.57 crore have already been spent till November, 2007 while Rs 90 crore would be spent by March end, 2008.

The Chief Parliamentary Secretary, Mr Dharambir Singh, said that an additional amount of Rs 225 crore would be spent under the Haryana Rural Development Fund Scheme for various works in villages like construction of retaining walls, cow ghats along the ponds and roads, construction of school rooms, community centres, chaupals, boundary walls of schools, veterinary schools and institutions, pavement of streets and drains.

Mr Singh said that the state government had earmarked Rs 157.27 crore for pavement of streets and construction of drains during the current year for 1572 villages.

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