GUWAHATI: The Assam government is planning to build a 'satellite township' or satellite city near Guwahati, in a 1,000 acre tract of land.
The plan to construct the satellite city was divulged in a press statement issued by state Housing and Urban Affairs minister Ashok Singhal's office.
Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) has been made the agency responsible for exploring the feasibility of the proposed project by the government.
Accordingly, GMDA has appointed as a consultant, selected through a bidding process, a Government of Singapore agency M/s Surbana Jurong Infrastructures Pvt. Ltd. The agency will prepare the master plans and development plans for the proposed satellite city, according to the statement.
The statement said that the state government has taken up plans to set up a new 'satellite township' or satellite city in an area of 1,000 acres near Guwahati in view of the growing population of Guwahati city and the increasing pressure on the city from all sides.
It further said that the consultant agency has already given a presentation comprising its initial suggestions before Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Ashok Singhal and that the final presentation is expected to be made soon.
The press statement further claimed that the state government had announced the creation of a world-class integrated business town named 'Amrit-Guwahati Integrated Global City (AMRIT-GIG City)' near Guwahati in the state budget for 2022-23.
The proposed Amrit-GIG business city is to be thoroughly planned over an area of 1000 acres. The plan intends to cover 'new-age' residential and social infrastructure as well as 'world-class infrastructure for the next generation to adapt to the changing times', the statement claimed.
On the recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission, proposals (Request for Proposal - RFP) have already been invited for the Performance Based Challenge Fund (Performance Based Challenge Fund) under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, the Government of India, to create eight new cities in the country. The department of housing and urban affairs of the state government is also participating in this central tender with the objective of getting this central fund of Rs 500 crore, said the statement.
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