AMRUT Ministry of Urban Development

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Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban

Transformation – Shaping Urban Development
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! “For Tier III cities such as Balasore, which are rapidly
Key Features of AMRUT ! urbanizing, AMRUT is a very important scheme. It will help
! ! us ensure a planned urban transformation.
• AMRUT is a scheme launched by ! - Mr. Rabindra Kumar Jena, Hon’ble MP, Balasore
the Government of India to !
provide basic services to urban According! to! the! Census! 2011,! the! urban! population! in! India!
households and develop modern grew!by!31.8!percent!as!compared!to!2001.!About!31.2!percent!
civic amenities in cities. of!Indians!now!live!in!over!7,935!statutory/census!towns,!with!
the! percentage! of! urban! population! being! higher! than! the!
• The scheme replaces the national!average!in!as!many!as!19!states/UTs.!Indian!cities!have!
some!of!the!highest!population!densities!in!the!world.!This!is!not!
erstwhile Jawaharlal Nehru
simply! a! demographic! shift,! but! places! cities! and! towns! at! the!
National Urban Renewal Mission
centre!of!India’s!development!trajectory.!In!the!coming!decades,!
! (JNNURM). Under the AMRUT, the the! urban! sector! will! play! a! critical! role! in! the! structural!
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Ministry of Urban Development transformation!of!the!Indian!economy!and!in!sustaining!the!high!
will approve a State Annual rates!of!economic!growth.!Ensuring!high!quality!public!services!
Action Plan each year. for! all! in! the! cities! and! towns! of! India! is! an! end! in! itself,! but! it!
will! also! facilitate! the! full! realization! of! India’s! economic!
• 500 cities are to be covered under potential.!!With!this!view!in!mind,!the!Government!of!India!(GoI)!
launched! the! Atal! Mission! for! Rejuvenation! and! Urban!
the scheme and this would
Transformation! on! 25th! June! 2015! to! develop! 500! cities! across!
include all cities with a
the! country.! This! brief! discusses! the! mission,! coverage! and!
population above 1,00,000, as well
thrust! areas! and! provides! a! brief! description! of! various!
as capital cities not covered components!of!the!scheme,!such!as!funding!and!planning.!!
under the previously mentioned
criteria.
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An Urbanizing India – Not Just a Demographic Shift
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The!rate!of!urbanization!in!India!has!been!extremely!rapid!in!the!past!two!decades!and!this!is!reflected!in!
the!fact!that!India!now!has!53!millionTplus!cities.!The!urban!population!is!expected!to!reach!a!figure!close!
to!600!million!by!2031.!However,!the!rapid!urbanization!presents!a!considerable!challenge!as!our!urban!
centres!suffer!from!a!lack!of!planning!and!poor!state!of!service!delivery,!as!highlighted!below.!!
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AMRUT!– An Attempt to Address the Poor State of Service Delivery in Urban Areas!
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Given!the!rapid!rate!of!urbanization!and!the!poor!state!of!service!delivery!in!cities!and!towns!across!the!
country,! the! High! Powered! Expert! Committee! (HPEC)! on! Urban! Infrastructure! and! Services! chaired! by!
Dr.! Isher! Judge! Ahluwalia! had! highlighted! the! need! for! significant! investment! to! the! tune! of! 39.2! lakh!
crores! to! improve! urban! infrastructure.! More! importantly,! the! report! presented! by! the! HPEC! had! also!
pointed! to! the! need! for! operation! and! maintenance! of! the! developed! infrastructure! as! well! as! a!
substantial!investment!towards!capacity!building!for!urban!local!governments!to!ensure!sustainability.!!
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At! that! point! of! time,! the! HPEC! had! also! evaluated! the! performance! of! the! ongoing! Jawaharlal! Nehru!
National! Urban! Renewal! Mission! (JNNURM),! which! was! being! implemented! across! 65! Urban!
Agglomerations! (UAs)/cities.! ! Based! on! a! comprehensive! assessment! of! the! scheme,! the! HPEC! had!
recommended!the!launch!of!a!New!Improved!JNNURM,!which!should!be!accessible!to!all!cities!and!towns!
and! focus! on! developing! capacity! for! the! Urban! Local! Bodies! (ULBs)! so! that! they! can! prepare! and!
implement!projects.!!
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In! line! with! the! recommendations! of! the! HPEC,! the! Government! of! India! launched! the! Atal! Mission! for!
Urban! Rejuvenation! and! Transformation! (AMRUT)! on! June! 25th! 2015.! A! Centrally! Sponsored! Scheme,!
AMRUT! seeks! to! address! the! issue! of! urban! development! in! a! coordinated! and! planned! manner! and!
involve! the! State! Government! for! better! planning! and! implementation! of! projects.! The! key! idea! is! to!
provide! the! basic! services! to! households! and! build! amenities! in! cities,! with! a! special! emphasis! on!
improving! the! quality! of! life! for! the! poor! and! the! disadvantaged.! AMRUT! focuses! on! ensuring! water!
supply,! sewerage! and! septage! management,! storm! water! drainage,! urban! transport! and! availability! of!
green!and!open!spaces,!reform!management!and!support,!and!capacity!building!for!Urban!Local!Bodies!
(ULBs).!!
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500!cities!are!to!be!covered!under!the!scheme!and!this!would!include!all!cities!with!a!population!above!
1,00,000,!as!well!as!capital!cities!not!covered!under!the!previously!mentioned!criteria.!Along!with!that,!
the! 12! cities! under! the! Heritage! City! Development! and! Augmentation! Yojana! (HRIDAY)! scheme,! some!
cities! on! the! stems! of! main! rivers! (population! between! 75,000! and! 1,00,000)! and! hill! cities/tourist!
destinations!would!also!be!covered!under!the!scheme.!The!Ministry!of!Urban!Development!(MoUD)!is!the!
nodal!ministry!for!the!scheme.!The!total!outlay!for!AMRUT!is!INR!50,000!crore!for!a!5Tyear!period!from!
FY!2015T16!to!FY!2019T20.!!!
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It! is! also! important! to! point! out! that! the! GoI! has! decided! to! dedicate! AMRUT! funds! towards! ongoing!
projects! under! JNNURM.! This! would! include! JNNURM! projects,! which! were! sanctioned! during! 2005! –!
2012! and! have! achieved! physical! progress! of! 50! percent! availing! 50! percent! of! central! assistance!
released! as! well! as! those! projects,! which! were! sanctioned! during! 2012T2014.! These! projects,! which!
number!102!and!296!respectively,!will!be!supported!till!March,!2017.!!
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The Planning and Institutional Mechanism – Addressing Issues in an Integrated Manner!
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The!AMRUT!guidelines!specify!that!the!primary!purpose!is!to!cover!all!households!with!water!supply!and!
sewerage!connection! and!the!planning!to!be!undertaken!at!the!city!and!state!level!should!take!this!into!
consideration!and!the!total!requirement!of!funds!for!achieving!universal!coverage!for!water!supply!and!
sewerage!should!form!a!significant!component!of!the!plan.!Also,!issues!related!to!availability!of!land!and!
clearances!from!department!had!been!identified!as!the!key!factors!responsible!for!delay!in!the!erstwhile!
JNNURM!projects.!Therefore,!learning!from!the!same,!the!AMRUT!guidelines!specify!that!projects,!which!
do!not!have!land!available!should!not!be!included!in!the!plan!to!be!prepared!by!the!government!and!ULBs!
and! no! project! work! order! should! be! issued! if! all! clearances! from! all! the! departments! have! not! been!
received!by!that!time.!!
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The! AMRUT! guidelines! specify! that! the! objective! is! to! create! infrastructure! that! has! a! direct! link! to!
provision! of! better! services! to! people! and! also! achieve! the! Service! Level! Benchmarks! (SLBs)1 ,! as!
prescribed! by! the! MoUD.! This! is! also! evident! in! the! fact! that! the! primary! aim! of! the! cityTlevel! plan! of!
action!(to!be!drawn!by!the!ULBs)!should!be!to!cover!all!households!with!tap!water!supply!and!a!sewerage!
connection.! Also,! since! the! scheme! is! based! on! the! principle! of! ‘incrementalism’! (wherein! the! specified!
benchmarks!are!to!be!achieved!via!a!stepTbyTstep!process!in!a!gradual!manner),!the!other!SLBs!will!be!
achieved! subsequently.! Under! AMRUT,! the! following! ! components! have! been! introduced! for! better!
implementation!of!the!project:!
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Service!Level!Improvement!Plan!(SLIP)!–!SLIP!assesses!the!service!level!gap!and!the!Urban!Local!Body!
(ULB)! develops! a! plan! to! correct! these! gaps.! After! planning,! a! cost! is! estimated,! and! prioritizing! of!
projects! and! zones! is! done.! Financing! of! projects,! including! the! Operation! and! Management! (O! and! M)!
costs!will!be!planned!through!the!SLIPs.!
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State!Annual!Action!Plan!(SAAP)!–!The!States!decide!on!the!interTULB!allocation!based!on!gap!analysis!
and!financial!strength!of!ULBs.!Typically!the!ULBs!selected!have!higher!gaps!in!provision!of!water!supply!
and!sewerage.!At!the!State!level,!the!SAAP!contains!projects!where!the!project!cost!is!linked!with!revenue!
sources!and!the!SAAP!would!be!an!aggregation!of!SLIPs!drawn!at!the!cityTlevel.!Under!AMRUT,!funds!are!
allocated!to!the!ULBs!through!the!States.!
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Resource! Person! –! A! Project! Development! and! Management! Consultant! (PDMC)! will! be! stationed! in!
cities! having! population! greater! than! five! lakh! and! serving! all! surrounding! AMRUT! cities! having!
population!below!five!lakh.!Each!PDMC!will!have!one!state!office.!The!scope!of!PDMC!under!the!proposed!
mission!will!be!divided!into!four!broad!components!namely!Planning,!Design!and!Supervision!and!Project!
Management.!
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!There!are!a!total!of!28!SLBs!spread!across!4!sectors!–!Water!Supply,!Sewerage,!Solid!Waste!Management!and!Storm!Water!Drainage!
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Na!onal Level

• Mission will be supervised by an Apex Committee (chaired by the Secretary,

MoUD), which would be responsible for approving State Annual Action Plan (SAAP)
and allocating and releasing funds to states/UTs/Mission Directorate on
formulating threshold of physical progress of project. Also, the Additional
Secretary (Smart Cities) has been appointed as the National Mission Director and
the designated person will be the overall in-charge of the entire mission.

• It would monitor and supervise the mission, and act as an advisory committee on
innovative ways for resource mobilization, private financing and land leveraging.
The committee is also held accountable for confirming appointment of
organizations, institutions or agencies for third party monitoring; and delegating
some of its functions to the Mission Director.

State Level
• The mission would be steered by a State Level High Powered Steering Committee
(chaired by the State Chief Secretary), which would identify the gaps in
infrastructure based on State Level Benchmarks, need for individual and
institutional capacity building, ways and means to achieve urban reforms,
finalisation of financial outlays, etc. of the Mission Cities/Towns. It would also
approve and plan the fund flow of projects.

• The committee will supervise and monitor the progress of project, recommend
proposals for release of instalment of funds, recommend roadmap and milestones
for implementation of reforms in the state/ULBs, and audit the release of funds
and review Action Taken Reports.

City Level

• The Urban Local Bodies will be responsible for implementation of the mission
through development of Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) and bid documents for
projects in the approved SAAP, procurement of implementation agencies and
ensuring timely completion of work.

• The ULBs are responsible for developing a roadmap for Reform Implementation
and Capacity Building, and building coordination and collaboration among
stakeholders for timely completion of projects without escalation of project cost.
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The Focus on Reforms – An Incentive Model
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AMRUT! places! a! lot! of! emphasis! on! reforms! and! successful! implementation! of! projects,! as! a! result! of!
which!the!corresponding!funds!flowing!to!the!state!are!also!tied!to!successful!completion!of!projects.!The!
guidelines! also! allow! for! reTallocation! of! funds! from! nonTperforming! state! to! the! performing! state.!
Thereby,! it! mandates! a! set! of! 11! Reforms,! which! have! to! be! implemented! by! all! the! States! and! 500!
Mission!cities!within!a!period!of!4!years.!The!State!needs!to!draw!a!roadmap!for!implementation!of!the!
reforms!at!the!State!and!ULB!level!and!have!to!specify!it!in!the!SAAP.!!
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The!11!reforms!are:!!
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• ETGovernance! • Review!of!Building!ByeTlaws!
• Constitution! and! Professionalization! of! • Energy!and!Water!Audit!
Municipal!Cadre! • Credit!Rating!
• Augmenting!Double!Entry!Accounting! • Swachh!Bharat!Mission!
• Urban! Planning! and! City! Development! • Municipal!Tax!and!Fees!Improvement!
Plans! • Improvement! in! Levy! and! Collection! of!
• Devolution!of!Funds!and!Functions! User!Charges!
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The! state’s! performance! will! be! evaluated! at! the! end! of! the! financial! year! and! 10! marks! would! be!
awarded!for!the!successful!implementation!of!every!milestone.!Also,!only!those!states!achieving!a!score!of!
70!percent!and!above!on!the!overall!reforms!would!be!considered!for!incentive!to!the!tune!of!10!percent!
of!the!funds,!which!would!be!in!addition!to!the!central!share!allocated!to!the!state.!The!StateTlevel!High!
Powered! Steering! Committee! would! be! responsible! for! the! distribution! of! the! incentive! amount! among!
the!ULBs!that!have!achieved!a!score!of!more!than!70!percent!in!the!state.!!
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At! this! point,! it! is! also! important! to! highlight! that! the! erstwhile! JNNURM! had! also! specified! a! list! of! 23!
reforms! to! be! undertaken! by! the! state! and! ULBs! in! order! to! strengthen! urban! governance.! As! of!
31.01.2014,! no! state! had! been! able! to! successfully! implement! all! the! listed! reforms! and! only! 13!
states/UTs!had!achieved!more!than!85!percent!of!the!reforms2.!3!states!–!Nagaland,!Manipur!and!Sikkim!
–!have!achieved!less!than!50!percent!of!the!reforms.!!
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From JNNURM to AMRUT – The Key Differences

Release of Funds under Scheme

The funds will be released in three installments Funds were released as Additional Central
of [Link]. They will be kept in a separate bank Assistance to the State Government or its
account by the implementing agency, as was designated State Level Nodal Agency. The nodal
done JNNURM. Central assistance will be to the agency disbursed central assistance to ULBs or
extent of 50 percent of project cost for cities and para-statal agencies, as the case may be, as soft
towns with a population of up to 10 lakh and loan or grant-cum-loan or grant. The MoUD
one-third of the project cost for those with a released the first installment of 25 percent once
population > 10 lakh. the state government/ULB/para-statal agency
signed the Memorandum of Agreement for
Once the Apex Committee approves the SAAP, implementation of JNNURM projects. The
the first installment of the funds will be balance amount of assistance were released as
released. The second and third installment will far as possible in three installments upon
be released on receipt of (i) Score Card, (ii) receipt of Utilization Certificates (UCs) to the
utilization certificates, and (iii) Project Funds extent of 70 percent of the grants (Central &
Request. Each Mission City will also be given an State) and subject to achievement of milestones
advance of INR 25 lakh for preparation of agreed for implementation of mandatory and
SLIP/individual capacity building. optional reforms

Project Approval Mechanism

In AMRUT, project-by-project sanction by the A Central Sanctioning & Monitoring Committee

Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) has been was constituted in the MoUD for sanctioning the
replaced by approval of the State Annual Action projects submitted by identified cities. Detailed
Plan once a year by the MoUD, based on which Project Reports were to be scrutinized by the
funds will be released. Technical wings of the Ministry or if necessary
by specialized/technical agencies before placing
The States have to give project sanctions and such proposals for sanction by Central
approvals at their end. Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee.
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Annexure I!–!Data on Urban Population and Allocation of AMRUT Cities

Statutory Census Urban Population AMRUT

Name of State/UT
Towns Towns Total %Urbanisation Cities
Andaman & Nicobar 1 4 1,43,488 37.70% 1
Andhra Pradesh 83 228 1,47,45,080 33
Arunachal Pradesh 26 1 3,17,369 22.94% 1
Assam 88 126 43,98,542 14.10% 4
Bihar 139 60 1,17,58,016 11.29% 27
Chandigarh 1 5 10,26,459 97.25% 1
Chhattisgarh 168 14 59,37,237 23.24% 9
Dadra & Nagar Haveli 1 5 1,60,595 46.72% 1
Daman & Diu 1 6 1,82,851 75.17% 1
Goa 14 56 9,06,814 62.17% 1
Gujarat 195 153 2,57,45,083 42.60% 31
Haryana 80 74 88,42,103 34.88% 20
Himachal Pradesh 56 3 6,88,552 10.03% 2
Jammu & Kashmir 86 36 34,33,242 27.38% 5
Jharkhand 40 188 79,33,061 24.05% 7
Karnataka 220 127 2,36,25,962 38.67% 27
Kerala 59 461 1,59,34,926 47.70% 9
Lakshadweep 1 6 50,332 78.07% 1
Madhya Pradesh 364 112 2,00,69,045 27.63% 34
Maharashtra 256 278 5,08,18,259 45.22% 44
Manipur 28 23 8,34,154 32.45% 1
Meghalaya 10 12 5,95,450 20.07% 1
Mizoram 23 0 5,71,771 52.11% 1
Nagaland 19 7 5,70,966 28.86% 2
Delhi 3 110 1,63,68,899 97.50% 1
Orissa 107 116 70,03,656 16.69% 9
Puducherry 6 4 8,52,753 68.33% 1
Punjab 143 74 1,03,99,146 37.48% 16
Rajasthan 185 112 1,70,48,085 24.87% 29
Sikkim 8 1 1,53,578 25.15% 1
Tamil Nadu 721 376 3,49,17,440 48.40% 33
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Telangana 42 0 1,36,08,665 38.67% 12
Tripura 16 26 9,61,453 26.17% 1
Uttar Pradesh 648 267 4,44,95,063 22.27% 61
Uttarakhand 74 41 30,49,338 30.23% 7
West Bengal 129 780 2,90,93,002 31.87% 60
Grand Total 4041 3892 37,72,40,435 31.15% 492
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Source:!Census!2011,!MoUD,![Link]!
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