Srinagar, Oct 19: Secretary, Planning, Development and Monitoring Department, Dr Owais Ahmad, on Monday directed the J&K Economic Reconstruction Agency (JKERA) to prepare a sustainable, Union Territory-wide infrastructure roadmap with a pipeline of innovative, fund-ready projects and proactively explore funding through Central schemes and other agencies to accelerate development across Jammu and Kashmir.
Chairing a meeting to review the agency’s overall functioning, Dr Owais stressed the need to identify viable projects and mobilise additional resources to strengthen infrastructure development across key sectors in the Union Territory.
Chief Executive Officer JKERA Akriti Sagar informed that since its creation in 2004 the J&KERA has played a pivotal role in up gradation of basic infrastructure in the Union Territory of J&K.
She apprised that the agency has successfully implemented three major Externally Aided Projects (EAPs) across Jammu and Kashmir.
These included the Multisector Project for Infrastructure Rehabilitation in J&K (MPIR) and the Jammu and Kashmir Urban Sector Development Investment Programme (JKUSDIP), both funded by the Asian Development Bank, besides the World Bank-funded Jhelum Tawi Flood Recovery Project (JTFRP).
She added that major areas of intervention by J&KERA included basic infrastructure and critical infrastructure in health, education, livelihood and strengthening of disaster management.
These included construction of state-of-the-art infrastructure in urban transportation – flyovers and grade separators, mega storm water drainage projects, construction of rural roads and bridges, buildings in health, higher education and school education sectors, livelihood initiatives, disaster management and urban reforms like water metering and capacity building of urban local bodies.
The Secretary was apprised that JKERA pioneered advanced technologies including seismic-proof structures, rigid concrete pavements, BaLA-designed schools, certified Green buildings, pneumatic tube systems, arch bridges, gaseous chlorination, trenchless drainage and restoration using devar stone and dhajji-dewari designs.
Under the World Bank-funded JTFRP, the agency has completed 225 sub-projects covering major roads, bridges, health and education infrastructure, oxygen plants in remote areas, medical equipment, ambulances, modern fire tenders, rescue gear and IT systems for disaster management including DSS, IOFS and disaster risk database besides flood mitigation studies for Jhelum and Tawi basins.
