Aerial view of Bhubaneswar and (below) Cuttack. Telegraph pictures

Bhubaneswar, March 24: The twin cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack will be made slum free by 2020 under the Slum Rehabilitation and Development Policy.

At the state Assembly last night, the housing and urban development minister, Badrinaryan Patra, said: “As the people of rural areas have started migrating to the urban centres, the urbanisation in the state is growing at a rate of 20 per cent.”

The state government has sanctioned Rs 56.31 crore to build 961 houses to rehabilitate families living in 18 slums in Bhubaneswar (Bharatpur-12, Dumuduma- 5 and Nayapali-1). A state-level steering committee has been constituted, headed by chief minister Naveen Patnaik to implement the Rajiv Gandhi Awas Scheme for rehabilitation of slum dwellers. Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) has been appointed as the nodal agency, said the minister. Similar projects will be taken up in other major towns of the state including Berhampur and Puri, he added.

The state government is also going to unveil an action plan under the State Urban Housing and Habitat Policy and Habitat Action Plan. Under the plan, stress would be given for proper sanitation and safe water.

“We will also prepare a urban street vendor policy for the rehabilitation of road side vendors,” said Patra.

A treatment plant will be set up over 62 acres of land at Bhusani on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar to treat the solid wastes of twin cities, he said.

Rs 754.23 crore has been earmarked to develop an integrated sewerage system for Bhubaneswar. Out of which Rs 121 crore has already been spent.

The state government is also implementing a similar project at a cost of Rs 945.13 crore for Cuttack city. Similarly under the integrated low cost sanitation programme, 25,423 toilets will be set up in 25 towns across the state.

“Our aim is to that all the towns will have toilet facilities for its residents by 2017. In the first phase, the programme will be implemented in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Puri Balasore, Baripada, Berhampur, Sambalpur and Rourkela,” he said.