500 researchers to dwell on engineering trends in smart cities
Gujarat’s first three-day national level conference on emerging research trends in engineering will kick start from Monday at the Vishwakarma Government Engineering College (VGEC) in Chandkheda. The event will see a number of research papers being presented by national level engineering institutions including the IITs’. Apart from them senior scientists from Isro, Institute for Plasma Research (IPR) will be part of the national level seminar. This year the event will see nearly 500 researchers from various engineering backgrounds present papers on emerging technologies for smart cities. In the run up to the event, organizers of the National Conference on Emerging Research Trends in Engineering (NCERTE) received 257 research papers from across the country , out of which 162 papers will be presented at the event.
Kohima gears up to be in the second Smart City list
Having missed the first list of Smart Cities Mission (SCM), Nagaland government is now gearing up to include the capital city in the mission from amongst a list of 23 Fast Track Cities. “Since we were unable to achieve the cut-off 50 marks for the first phase of the mission, Kohima has been given a second chance by the Union Urban Development Ministry by putting it amongst the 23 Fast Track Cities, out of which around 15 would be selected for developing into Smart Cities,” Parliamentary Secretary R Tohanba said here today. Kohima Municipal Council (KMC), in consultation with stake holders of the capital city and Gurgaon-based Voyants Solutions Pvt Ltd, has prepared a fresh Detailed Project Report to be submitted to the Centre on April 10, he said. “We intend to transform Kohima into a Smart City by providing basic requirements of the denizens such as proper electricity, water supply, information technology, better traffic management, security and improved road conditions,” Tohanba said. The second Smart City list will be declared on April 15, he added.
NHAI hikes toll fee on National Highways
Toll fee on national highways was today hiked by 3 per cent, but it will be applicable to only 20 out of the 42 plazas in Tamil Nadu. The revision of user fee on National Highways effected from today was done on the basis of the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) said. Such a revision in the month of April was “automatic” and “routine” as per the original notification, the Regional Office of NHAI said in a release here. The revision effected this year is “very marginal” and “mere 3 per cent compared to the previous financial year”, it said. “In fact, there is no increase in the rates applicable for Car, Van, LCV (Light Commercial Vehicle) etc, in most of the toll plazas since the revised rate is rounded off to the nearest five rupees,” it said. In Tamil Nadu, the hike is applicable to 20 of the total 42 toll plazas, it added, without elaborating further. The increase in user-fee for the succeeding year was calculated based on the increase in Wholesale Price Index (WPI) with respect to the current year as per the rules, it added. NHAI’s statement came in the wake of opposition to the “periodical revision” from a section of road-users in Tamil Nadu such as lorry owners and traders, which the NHAI termed as a “misconception”. Political parties, including DMK and PMK, have sought a rollback of the hike in user-fee.
Delhi to Nainital journey to get shorter
National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has awarded Rs 1,336 crore projects for augmenting various stretches on NH 87 connecting Uttar Pradesh to Uttarakhand, to Sadbhav Infrastructure. On completion, the journey from the national capital to Nainital and beyond would get shorter. “Rampur to Rudrapur to Kathgodam on NH-87 connecting Uttar Pradesh to Uttarakhand will be built on BOT (build, operate, transfer) hybrid-annuity mode in two packages which have been cleared by NHAI Board in favour of Sadbhav Infrastructure Project Limited at bid price of Rs 1,336 crore,” NHAI said in a statement. Although the length of the project is only 93 km, it is critical for connecting to Nainital, it said adding the project will have three bypasses at Rampur, Bilaspur and Haldwani towns. The project is scheduled to be completed in two-and-half years time. The stretches are part of NH-87 starting from Rampur in Uttar Pradesh and terminating at Karnaprayag in Uttarakhand. “Four-laning of Rampur-Rudrapur-Kathgodam section would strengthen road infrastructure and serve as an important link to tourist places like Nainital, Kausani, Ranikhet, Mukteswar, Almora etc. This would also give impetus to industrial development as prominent industrial estates at Pantnagar and Lalkuan fall on this route,” the statement said. On completion, this would save the travel time for traffic plying from Delhi to Nainital and beyond in Uttarakhand apart from reducing cost of travel by lowering maintenance and wear and tear cost of vehicles, it added. The project would cover districts of Rampur, Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital and important towns such as Rampur, Bhotbazar, Bilaspur, Rudrapur, Pantnagar, Lalkuan, Haldwani and Kathgodam.
Core infra sector growth touches 15-month high of 5.7% in February
The output of eight core-sector industries surged to a 15-month high of 5.7% in February, marking a third straight monthly rise and recording a broad-based recovery, according to the official data released on Thursday. Barring coal, seven of the core sector constituents recorded a sequential improvement in February. A year-on-year contraction in steel output was also contained at just 0.5% in February, compared with a fall of 8.4% in the previous month, suggesting the government moves to protect domestic primary steel producers against cheaper imports were starting to have an impact, said analysts. The broad-based improvement in core sector growth in February will likely support the IIP (index of industrial production) estimate for the month, although the performance of the IIP in February could remain weak due to an unfavourable base (It had grown 4.8% in February 2015). The core infrastructure industries have a combine weightage of roughly 38% in the IIP. Despite the improvement, steel remained the only core to record a contraction in February, thanks to poor demand from end-users as well as the availability of cheaper imports. The imposition of minimum import price for steel imports helped to restrict the contraction to just 0.5% in February 2016 from an average of 5% in the previous three months. The imposition of minimum import price rendered pulled down imports and prop up domestic production. In coal, the slowdown in growth to 3.9% in February from as high as 9.1% in January are expected to have been caused by a build-up of inventories. Electricity generation touched a five month high of 9.2% in February, led by a double-digit growth of thermal electricity generation of 12%, the impact of which was dampened by an 11% contraction in hydro electricity generation. “If the monsoon in 2016 is normal after a gap of two years, hydroelectricity generation is expected to receive a substantial boost, which would improve the overall pace of expansion in power generation,” said Aditi Nayar, senior economist at ICRA. Cement output growth has risen for a third straight month to a robust 13.5% in February. “With demand from end-users, including cement-intensive infrastructure, rural housing etc. remaining modest, the double-digit growth in cement output is unlikely to sustain,” Nayar said. The two other sectors that witnessed a huge improvement in February were crude and natural gas. Crude output rose 0.8% in February, compared with a fall of 4.6% in the previous month. Similarly, natural gas output picked up 1.2% in February, against a 15.3% contraction in the previous month. Crude, natural gas and steel were the worst performer since the beginning of the last fiscal. Domestic steel production has been badly hit by cheaper imports, especially after Chinese mills started dumping in the global market to cut huge inventory, analysts said. No wonder, the segment witnessed contraction in each month since June last year.
European Investment Bank to lend $512 million for Lucknow metro
The European Investment Bank will give 450 million euros ($512 million) in loan to India to finance the construction of Lucknow’s first 23 km-long metro rail line and purchase a fleet of new trains. An agreement on the first tranche of the credit was signed in Brussels on Wednesday during the 13th EU-India summit attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The loan represented the largest project financing by European Union’s official bank, also the world’s largest international public bank, in India since its engagement in the country began more than 20 years ago and the most significant investment in sustainable public transport outside Europe, Luxembourgbased European Investment Bank (EIB) said. The 450 million euro ($512 million) long-term loan – expected to cover half of the total project cost for the Lucknow Metro – will be used to finance the first metro line in Lucknow, including both construction of the 23 km-long new metro line and a fleet of metro trains. The line is the first part of a broader metro network planned for Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh. When it becomes operational, the new metro is expected to increase the use of public transport from 10 per cent to an estimated 27 per cent in the city of three million people, the bank said in a statement. EIB president Werner Hoyer said the bank would expand its support for long-term investments in India and unveiled plans to open a regional representation for South Asia in New Delhi by the end of this year. The EIB has supported long-term investment across India that has helped the country harness renewable energy, strengthened industry and reduced carbon emissions. The bank recognises that the time is right to increase its engagement in India, Hoyer said. “The first metro line in Lucknow is a flagship project not only for Uttar Pradesh and India, but also for the bank’s strengthened global commitment to support transformational investment,” Hoyer said. The loan agreement was signed by India’s Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg and the EU Manjeev Singh Puri and EIB Vice President for Asia Jonathan Taylor in the presence of Modi, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Council President Donald Tusk. The EIB had committed loans totalling more than 1.34 billion euros for longterm investment in India since the cooperation began in 1993.
110 Lucknow corporators to get more devpt fund
In a big surprise for 110 corporators of city who often fell short of development funds, LMC House on Thursday allocated Rs 80 lakh as maximum limit for development fund for each ward. The earlier limit was Rs 60 lakh which has now been increased by Rs 10 lakh while another Rs 10 lakh has been reserved for emergency constructions, like park, road repair, and re-boring of hand-pumps etc; in each ward. This fund is at the discretion of municipal commissioner. He can release the money if he finds the requirement genuine. The decision comes following a heated discussion wherein the corporators demanded Re 1 crore per ward while the mayor agreed to allocate only Rs 75 lakh per ward. The common man can also breathe easy as LMC’s proposal to increase door-to-door waste collection charges was turned down by the mayor. LMC wanted to increase user charges to be able to pay increased share to its private partner. The mayor said, “We have turned down the proposal and would sent it back to the state government. We will also ask the government to give us some funds to be able to meet the cost of running waste treatment plant.” LMC’s policy to fine people Rs 500 for throwing garbage or peeing in open, resorting to open defecation in areas with public toilets and for burning garbage on roads got a go-ahead in the house too. Under budget provisions, Rs 150 crore has been sanctioned towards building new Kalyan Mandaps, Rs 50 crore for making a new electric crematorium near Gulalaghat, Rs 20 crore for a tempo shelter home in Rajajipuram and Rs 35, 30 and 50 crore towards making open air gyms in parks, mini sports complex and temporary shelter homes in city respectively. 5% rebate on house tax to those installing solar panels and supplying energy to the main grid. Also 5% rebate to people using rain water harvesting projects in houses Mayor instructs LMC to streamline the process of online dissemination of birth and death certificates to people, asks to remove bottlenecks in procedure on priority Identifies 0.414 hectare land in Kamta for developing an outdoor stadium in future Approves 23.84 hectare land for developing fifth waterworks for catering to water supply of Alambagh and other areas of zone-5 Approves forming of an SPV to execute smart city project in Lucknow, to take 40% extra house tax as smart cess from people whose houses get revamped under retrofitting model Rs 100 crore allocated to Aanchal shelter home in Adil Nagar, Rs 60 crore for orphanage in Alambagh. Rs 100 crore have been also proposed for making a management institute in future.