UP govt to set up body for state capital region

The UP government is planning to set up a planning body on the lines of Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) that can be set up to give shape to the state capital region (SCR). This is designed to give more powers for urbanisation to divisional commissioners and introduce an act to boost regional development in six divisions.

Senior officials of the housing and urban development departments said that the state government is planning to bring in a new law to focus on the framework required for rapid urbanisation.

While an exclusive authority to be headed by a principal secretary or a senior officer will preside over the SCR, Agra, Varanasi, Jhansi, Faizabad, Gorakhpur, Meerut and Bareilly divisions are also expected to be covered under the new framework.

Comprising 75 districts, UP is governed through 18 divisional headquarters headed by divisional commissioners. Apart from the state capital region, at least seven to eight other regional urban directorates will be defined under the new framework.

Officers heading them will have the authority to act as the umbrella body to ensure regional growth through close coordination between local administration, police, public works department, municipal corporation, development authority, irrigation department and other key agencies.

The SCR which comprises eight districts adjoining Lucknow and Kanpur and is spread over 34,002 square kilometres will be earmarked as a special zone.

"An agency like MMRDA will be created for the SCR. The agency will figure out what needs to be done to promote growth and mobility by planning network of highways, bridges, flyovers, land development, industrialisation, Metro rail services, heliports, jetties and logistics hub among others and direct other government agencies to do the needful," a government spokesman added.