Uttar Pradesh

• 18 Mar 2023

Mega Textile Park proposal in Hardoi got authorised

Why in News?

• On 17th March 2023, the Government of India announced sites for setting up 7 PM Mega Integrated Textile Region & Apparel (PM MITRA) parks for the textile industry, including Hardoi district of Uttar Pradesh.

Key Points

• With the construction of Mega Textile Park on 1000 acres in Hardoi district of the state at a cost of 1200 crores, all the works and facilities related to the textile industry will be available in a single complex. With this, an investment of Rs 10,000 crore and the employment of lakhs of people are expected in the state.
• Sant Kabir PM Mitra Textile and Apparel Park will be the name of the park that will be constructed in the Hardoi region of Uttar Pradesh under PM Mitra. The state will receive five billion rupees as compensation.
• It is noteworthy that the Central Government has approved the setting up of PM Mitra (Prime Minister's Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel) Park in seven states of the country namely Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.
• Out of 18 proposals for PM Mitra Parks that were submitted from 13 states, these 7 sites were chosen. For this, the evaluation of eligible states and locations was carried out by a transparent selection system, based on various factors such as connectivity, existing ecosystems, clothing/industrial policies, infrastructure, utility services, etc., taking into account objective standards.
• For this purpose, model connectivity was also used for the verification of the PM Speed Power-Multi-National Master Plan.
• A special pavement wheel (SPV) owned by the central and state government will be established for each park, with 51 percent of the Northern Territory government and 49 percent of the Government of India. SPV will monitor the implementation of the project.
• The Ministry of Textiles will provide financial assistance of up to Rs 500 crore per park as capital assistance for the development of the park SPV.
• Competitive incentive support (CIS) of up to 300 crores per park will also be provided to encourage the rapid implementation of units in PM MITRA Park. The Master Developer and Investor Units will also be facilitated by mixing with other plans of the Government of India to ensure additional incentives.
• The textile park in the province will be developed in PPP mode. The free-of-charge land has been granted to the Handloom and Textiles Department for this. The Additional Chief Secretary, Handloom and Textiles Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh will be appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SPV.
• About 1 lakh direct and 2 lakhs of lateral employment is expected to be generated from this park.

5 Bus Stands of the State will be Developed on the Lines of the Airport

Why in news?

• According to information received from the media on March 16, 2023, the Uttar Pradesh government will develop the state's bus stands on the lines of airports. For this purpose, the selection process for five bus stands under the PPP model has been facilitated by private developers in the first phase under the development plan of 23 bus stands.

Key Points

• The Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) has received an investment proposal of Rs 1000 crore to upgrade these five bus stands on the lines of airports.
• Through this investment, more than 2000 direct and lateral employment opportunities are likely to be generated at these five locations.
• The department has received several investment proposals through the bid process that ended in February, including those from investors who submitted proposals in UPGIS.
• Work will start on this after the approval of the Committee of Secretaries headed by the Chief Secretary and the Cabinet. It is estimated that by the end of this month, they will be issued a letter of permission (LOI).
• The five bus stands which have been selected to be developed on the lines of the airport by the developers are- Kaushambi Bus Station, Lucknow's Vibhuti Khand Bus Station, Prayagraj's Civil Lines Bus Station, Ghaziabad's Old Bus Station and Agra Fort Bus Station.
• For the modernization of these bus stations, the bids of many other builders including Omaxe and SPG builders have been included. According to the investment proposals received through them, Rs 245 crore will be invested in Kaushambi bus station, 307 crores in Vibhuti Khand of Lucknow, 276 crores in Civil Lines of Prayagraj, 114 crores in Old Ghaziabad Bus Station and Rs 22 crore in Agra Fort bus station.
• The bus station in the state will no longer be addressed as Bus Adda. Now it will be addressed as Bus Port just like the airport. Transport Corporation has also started using this word in its departmental functioning.
• It will also have arrangements for public announcement, while facilities like a VIP lounge, cafeteria, food court, shopping malls, waiting area, escalator, and lift will also be developed in it.
• The developers will operate it in a multistorey building on 30 percent of the department's land. The remaining 70 percent will remain on bus traffic and parking spaces. The maintenance work of these bus ports will be with these developers only.
• Apart from the modernization of bus stations, the Transport Corporation has also received investment proposals in another category. This category belongs to IT.
• Roadways GM (IT) Yajuvendra Kumar told that among the companies which have shown interest in this category is Paytm which wants to launch an NCMC card. This card will be like a monthly metro card, so there will be no need to buy tickets again and again.