BANGALORE:The State government is planning to extend heritage-based urban development scheme, implemented in Mysore on a pilot basis, to 10 more cities.
Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, Urban Development Minister Vinay Kumar Sorake said a committee headed by the Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation (KUIDFC) Managing Director Darpan Jain has been constituted to shortlist the cities.
The minister said special grants would be provided to the cities, including Udupi, Gulbarga, Bidar and Bijapur, to conserve their heritage, monuments besides sustaining local economy through heritage tourism. The World Bank’s assistance would be sought for the scheme.
The committee has been asked to submit its report in three months. Based on the recommendation a detailed action plan would be chalked out, the minister added.
More corporations
He said there have been proposals from Ramanagar and Channapatna city municipal councils (CMCs) for city corporation status.
Sorake said details of population density and agricultural activity in the jurisdiction of the two CMCs have been sought and a final decision will be taken after studying the reports.
The government has recently upgraded Tumkur, Shimoga and Bijapur CMCs to city corporations. Besides, as many as 33 town panchayats in the State have been upgraded to city municipal councils.
The State government will shortly take up filling up of 6,000 vacancies in the urban development department, including 1,000 pourakarmikas, Sorake said.
