Government documents to be issued within 24 hours
The Union Ministry of Urban Development has proposed a set of reforms under the AMRUT scheme for augmenting urban infrastructure and facilities. Among them is a measure which states that municipalities of 500 cities with over one lakh people will have to issue documents such as building permits, ration cards, birth and death certificates etc. within 24 hours of online application.
Shifting to a trust based process
"Municipalities will start the process of issuance of certificates soon after receiving an online request. It is a new approach based on trust. You trust and offer a service, and verify later," said Rajiv Gauba, the Union Urban Development secretary.
The reforms are part of PM Modi's AMRUT scheme
The reforms introduced by the Ministry of Urban Development are all linked to monetary incentives which are part of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT). Launched by PM Modi in June 2015, the Ministry of Urban Development scheme aims to upgrade infrastructure, online or otherwise, in 500 cities. Previously, online services like bill payment was offered only by 50 cities.
Rs. 10,000 crore allotted for AMRUT now
"We have proposed increasing the incentive component from the existing Rs. 2,000 crore to Rs. 10,000 crore for the remaining duration of the AMRUT mission. We will soon seek cabinet approval for this," said Gauba, explaining the expanded scope for AMRUT.
The reforms proposed by the Ministry of Urban Development
While timelines are still being fixed, under AMRUT, the Ministry of Urban development will offer financial incentives to urban local bodies (ULBs) for implementation. The reforms include online payment of government service bills, online application for documents, implementation of the land-titling law for transparency, filling up municipal job vacancies, establishing dedicated municipal cadres, and raising money through innovative financial models for funding infrastructural development.
Towards making ULBs self-reliant
"These reforms - once implemented - will go a long way in making ULBs self-reliant," added Rajiv Gauba.
