Patna master plan gets committee push

Decks have been cleared for implementation of the proposed master plan of Patna with the election of the Patna Metropolitan Committee last week.

Upon approval from the state Election Commission, the urban development department would issue the notification for the same.

Thereafter, the proposed master plan would be tabled in the first or second meeting of the committee for a final approval.

The 30-member Patna Metropolitan Committee was elected by around 110 elected representatives including ward councillors and mukhiyas in the civic bodies and panchayats in and around the state capital in the elections held on April 16 and 18.

Apart from elected representatives, the committee would also have senior government officials, including secretaries of various departments, including urban development, road construction, planning and development, industries, panchayat raj, public health and engineering department and Patna district magistrate among others.

"The urban development department had asked the state Election Commission to elect members of the Metropolitan Area Committee. Upon directive from the state Election Commission, the elections for the metropolitan committee were conducted by the Patna district administration. Following the issuance of notification by the urban development department for constitution of the committee, the proposed master plan would be put before it seeking its approval, which would pave the way for taking it to the cabinet for final approval," said a senior official in urban development and housing department.

The new master plan for Patna is in a state of inertia for he past four years. The urban development department, in February 2011, had entrusted the task of making survey and providing technical assistance for the preparation of the draft master plan for Patna to the Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology University, Ahmedabad.

The draft master plan of the city was released on October 19, 2014. Later, it was approved by the Bihar Planning and Development Board on August 11 last year but the final nod on it was denied by the cabinet because it did not have the approval of the Patna Metropolitan Area Committee. Later, in a review meeting of the urban development department held on December 22 last year, chief minister Nitish Kumar asked officials to get the master plan approved by the state cabinet within three months.

"Creation of metropolitan committee is one of the mandatory criteria as per Bihar Municipal Act, 2007, and Bihar Metropolitan Committee Rules, 2008. The committee would work to make the state capital region an economically and environmentally sustainable area, and facilitate development of neighbouring regions as well. The committee would hold meetings once in every three months to review development work and take further actions," said the urban development department official.

Patna is getting its master plan after a gap of 33 years. The last master plan for Patna (1961-1981) had expired 33 years ago and since then there were no guidelines to regulate urban growth.