Electric buses to metro expansion: What Chennai gets in TN’s budget

Chennai grabbed a good share of infrastructure and other development projects in the Tamil Nadu Budget 2019-20, presented by Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister of Tamil Nadu O Panneerselvam on Friday. He declared that the revenue deficit for the year 2019-20 will decrease to Rs 14,314.76 crore from Rs 19,319.02 crore, the revised estimate for 2018-19.

Chennai too got its share of projects from the budget, mostly catering to the development of infrastructure in the city and its periphery. The budget announcement also included projects to tackle some of the pressing problems faced by the city for many years -- water shortage and garbage management.

Here is a list of all the projects announced for Chennai in the Tamil Nadu budget of 2019-20.

1. Intelligent Transport System to be implemented in Chennai at a cost of Rs 660 crore. This project will involve optimisation and improvement in the city’s traffic, public bus transportation and transport management systems.
2. In an attempt to address the city’s parking woes, a comprehensive parking management system will be implemented at an outlay of Rs 2,000 crore. This system will include underground and multi-level parking facilities, smart lane parking facilities and will be executed in a Public-Private partnership mode.
3. In a boost to the food processing industry, Deputy Chief Minister announced that a French company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during the Global Investors Meet which was held in January 2019 to invest Rs 2,000 crore for setting up a food processing park near Chennai.
4. A sum of Rs 25 crore has been set aside for concrete and live wire fencing around Chennai’s reserve forests to protect them.
5. Rs 300 crore has been sanctioned for restoration projects of Adyar and Cooum rivers which are already in progress. The government has also allocated Rs 165.68 crore for restoration of the Pallikaranai marshland.
6. The Chennai Mega City Development Mission received a fillip, with Rs 500 crore being sanctioned for it. The former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa’s ambitious project was flagged by the CAG in 2017 since the government had allocated Rs 2,500 crore from 2011-2016 against an estimated outlay of Rs 9,228 crore.
7. Rs 1,546,04 crore has been allocated for solid waste management projects in eight zones of the Greater Chennai corporation. The government is also considering plans for reclamation of existing landfills in Kodungaiyur and Perungudi with an outlay of Rs 5,259.10 crore and will be set up under a Public-Private Partnership model.  
8. In order to resettle those who live on the river banks in the city, the government has accorded a sanction of Rs 4,647.50 crore to construct 38,000 tenements. This project will be carried out with the assistance of the World Bank.
9. The Deputy Chief Minister also announced in the Assembly that the negotiations with JICA (Japan International Cooperative Agency) for the Chennai Peripheral Ring Road project is in the final stages. This project extends from Ennore port to Mamallapuram on the East Coast road.
10. Chennai, along with Madurai and Coimbatore, will receive 500 electric buses in the first phase of restructuring programme of the cities’ public transportation system.
11. Chennai Metro Rail expansion is all set cover a length of 172.91 kms including the extensions which are to be commissioned. Rs 2,681 crore will fund CMRL through shares and debt. Apart from this, a go-ahead for preparation of Detailed Project Reports for CMRL phase II and integrating Chennai/s MRTS and Metro has been given.
12. A state career guidance centre will also be established in Chennai to train students for free, to participate in competitive exams in pursuit of employment opportunities.