Patna among 500 towns included under Centre's AMRUT project

PATNA: Having missed out from the Centre's Smart City list, Patna has found a place among 26 cities/towns of Bihar in the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) with the Centre today vowing to pay special attention to the state capital.

"We will pay special attention to some state capitals including Patna, for development of infrastructure and amenities," Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters.

He said under AMRUT, the Centre would give funds to beneficiary cities, including Patna, for amenities like drinking water, sanitation, transport etc.

In all 26 cities/towns from Bihar have been included under AMRUT, while three cities - Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur and Biharsharif - have been included in the Smart City Project, Naidu said.

Asked about Patna's omission from the Smart City project, Naidu said the state government had recommended only three cities and all have been accommodated in the list.

The cities/towns of Bihar included in the AMRUT list are Gaya, Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur, Biharsharif, Darbhanga, Purnia, Arrah, Begusarai, Katihar, Munger, Chapra, Dinapur Nizamat, Saharsa, Hajipur, Sasaram, Dehri, Siwan, Bettiah, Motihari, Bagaha, Kishanganj, Jamalpur, Jehanabad, Buxar and Aurangabad.

The Union Cabinet had some time ago cleared the projects -- 100 Smart Cities and a new urban renewal mission for 500 cities named after former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, replacing the one christened after Jawaharlal Nehru, with a total outlay of Rs 98,000 crore for the next five years.

While Rs 48,000 cr has been earmarked for Smart City project, Rs 50,000 crore will be spent on AMRUT.