Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on June 17, approved ₹225.53 crore in favour of 36 urban local bodies (ULBs) covering 10 districts under the State-funded flagship scheme 'MUKTA' (Mukhya Mantri Karma Tatpara Abhiyan) for the financial year 2023-24.
The districts covered under Northen RDC (Revenue Divisional Commission) limit are Dhenkanal, Angul, Keonjhar, Sambalpur, Sundargarh, Balangir, Subarnapur, Bargarh, Jharsuguda and Deogarh.
All these 36 ULBs have developed ward-wise feasible annual action plan under MUKTA through a participatory process involving local citizens and key stakeholders.
An official statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said that all these projects are demand-driven, technically feasible and environmentally sustainable projects.
The action plans have been screened at the department level before the approval of the Chief Minister. All these approved projects to be taken up under MUKTA will be executed directly by Mission Shakti groups as implementing agency.
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Earlier, senior officials of the CMO discussed the matter with the public representatives of 36 ULBs of 10 districts on June 16 regarding the successful implementation of various projects under MUKTA.
The projects approved under MUKTA are climate resilient work, which includes the creation of civic amenities, open space development, water body development, construction of multi-purpose community centres, city beautification and other labour-oriented work.
The MUKTA programme was launched by Mr. Patnaik in April 2020 with a mission to create a rapid, immediate and mass employment opportunities for urban poor, informal and migrant labourers, rendered unemployed and vulnerable in the face of the COVID-19-induced crisis, while addressing the need to create climate-resilient, cost-effective, sustainable and replicable community assets by implementing labour-intensive public works across 115 ULBs.
Overall, Mr. Patnaik has sanctioned ₹833.21 crore in three phases covering all 115 ULBs of 30 districts of the State, official sources said.
