Union Budget 2023: Small cities to play in big league with urban infra fund

The government will set up an Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF), which will make Rs 10,000 crore available to states to create infrastructure in tier-2 and tier-3 cities. All cities and towns will be enabled to go for 100% mechanical cleaning of septic tanks and transition from “manhole” to “machine hole”, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said.

Announcing the government’s roadmap for making cities and towns sustainable and cleaner, the FM said there will be enhanced focus on scientific management of dry and wet waste.

The government’s focus on sanitation is clear from the allocation for 2023-24. While the Centre has proposed a minor increase atRs 76,432 crore for the housing and urban affairs ministry, compared to the revised estimate of Rs 75,546 crore for 2022-23, it has allocated Rs 5,000 crore for Swachh Bharat Mission for the next fiscal — a whopping 250% more than the revised estimate of the current fiscal.

The UIDF will be managed by the National Housing Bank and will be used by public agencies to create urban infrastructure in tier-2 and tier-3 cities, the FM said. “States will be encouraged to leverage resources from the grants of the 15th finance panel, as well as existing schemes, to adopt appropriate user charges while accessing the UIDF,” she said.