Two years after the launch of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), the Planning Commission has pointed out that municipal corporations and other city level agencies lack institutional capacities, particularly skilled workforce and managerial staff, to implement the large projects envisaged under the flagship programme of the UPA government.
The overall institutional capacity, more specifically the project implementation capacity of urban local bodies, is clearly inadequate to deal with the large projects to be taken up under the mission.
The Commission found that there is a shortfall in the contracting capacities of the private sector. Also large, organised players in the infrastructure sector are yet to look at municipal infrastructure seriously. This is mainly due to the uncertainties in the environment, including poor credibility of the implementing agencies.
The Commission has suggested immediate lateral expansion of human resources with appropriate skills backed by good project management systems. Adequate attention to priority sectors like water supply, sewerage and sanitation should be given in city development plans, it has said adding undue attention is at present being given to road projects and flyovers.
Experience in implementing programmes so far has shown that there is a need to focus on recovery of operation and maintenance (O&M) costs and exploring the possibility of involving the private sector through public private partnerships, particularly in the city development plans.
It may be mentioned that states like Uttar Pradesh has sought the help of consulting firm in infrastructure space Feedback Ventures to prepare the city development plans and implement the projects.
Till date, 1,100 projects with a total cost of over Rs 43,000 crore have been sanctioned in sectors such as water supply, sanitation, transport, road and housing in many cities spread over several states under the JNNURM.
Four agencies ? Credit Analysis and Research, ICRA, Crisil and Fitch Rating India, have been selected for assessing the credit worthiness of urban local bodies of the 63 cities under the JNNURM.