APPROACH TO XI th FIVE YEAR PLAN IN RESPECT OF COMMUNICATION SECTOR UNDER PWD ARUNACHAL PRADESH

APPROACH TO XI th FIVE YEAR PLAN IN RESPECT OF COMMUNICATION SECTOR UNDER PWD ARUNACHAL PRADESH GOVERNMENT OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT ITANAGAR P : 0360-2212427

1 APPROACH TO XIth FIVE YEAR PLAN IN RESPECT OF COMMUNICATION SECTOR UNDER PWD ARUNACHAL PRADESH I. ARUNACHAL PRADESH-AN OVERVIEW 1.1 Land and climate Arunachal Pradesh is a infrastructure deficient frontier state. Lying in the north-eastern tip of the Indian subcontinent it is bounded by long international borders of about 1628 Km with Bhutan to the west, China to the north, Myanmar to the east. It also shares interstate boundary with Assam and Nagaland in the south. With an area of 83,743 sq.km, it is the largest geographical entity in the whole of North-Eastern region. The State s topography is predominantly hilly and it is traversed by many major rivers and their tributaries, all discharging into the Brahmaputra. About 82% of the geographical area of the state is under the cover of forests which support a diverse spectrum of flora and fauna. The state receives high precipitation with annual rainfall exceeding 2500 mm and substantial snow melt in the upper reaches. 1.2 People It is a Schedule Tribe majority state with ethnically diverse 25 major tribes. With total population of 1.10 million (as per the 2001 census) the density of population stands as 13.11 persons per sq.km, the thinnest in the country. Over 75% of the people live in villages which are widely scattered with many located in remote interiors close to the international borders. There has been a tendency for in migration of people from rural pockets in remote areas to urban centres and potential growth centres which have seen galloping increases in population. The high growth rare of urban population could also signal influx of people from outside. 1.3 Economy Earlier the economy was largely driven by a vibrant forest based industry. A roaring timber industry of logging, sawing, veneering and ply making saw a premature demise due to the Supreme Court order restricting such operations.

2 Subsistence agriculture is the main occupation of the indigenous people. There has been substantial development in horticulture with apples, oranges, pineapples, kiwi fruits, large etc. grown in various pockets of the state. The potential for further growth is unlimited. Tea plantation is coming up in a big way in Tirap, Changlang, Lohit, Lower Dibang Valley and East Siang districts. The great potential for cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants is yet to be tapped. The state is also endowed with immense potential for development of hydropower, estimated to be around 50,000 MW, the third of the country. It also has deposits of coal, oil, limestone, graphite, etc. There is also great potential for development of tourism sector in the state. The great rivers, the high mountains, dense forest with species rich flora and fauna, and the ethnically divers people - all these could support adventure tourism, eco tourism, cultural tourism. Tourism industry in the state, however, is yet to take off mainly because of the problem caused by communication bottleneck. 1.4 Problems of communication The major stumbling block standing on the path to development of Arunachal Pradesh is the bottleneck in communication. In the absence of other mode of transport, road is the only reliable means of communication in the state. But the road development in Arunachal Pradesh is yet to reach take off stage. With the density of road standing at 18.65 Km/sq.km, (national average 84 Km/100 sq.km and NE average 60 km/100 sq.km) the state has the lowest road development index in the country. A large number of administrative centres and the majority of the villages in the state still remain unconnected. In places where there is a landing ground or a helipad, there could be limited air service through helicopters of the Pawan Hans Ltd. or IAF services however, are restricted to supply of essential commodities, evacuation of patients, VIP movement or defense needs.

3 The remote locations not linked by road are also served through a network of porter/mule tracks. With construction materials and essential items carted through head loads, development efforts in these areas are prohibitively costly and the progress extremely slow. 1.5 Vulnerability to natural hazard Forming a part of Zone-V, in the seismological map of the country, the state is highly vulnerable to earthquakes. Many major earthquake have been seen in the state including the one of more than 8 point on the Richer scale that occurred on 15.08.1950. During major calamities like earthquakes, landslides, or floods, the road communication could be snapped or remain severely affected, leading to problem of reaching essential commodities and relief materials to the affected areas and people. Further, disturbance of road communication will also be adversely affect other development activities.

4 II. DEVELOPMENT IN COMMUNICATION SECTOR - PRESENT STATUS 2.1 Roads under different agencies From a near clean slate state at the time of Independence, with just a few dirt tracks barely totaling 160 Km in length, the Arunachal Pradesh can now boast of 15619 Km of road network developed by various agencies like the State PWD, the BRO, the Rural Works Department, the Department of Environment and Forest etc. through different programme such as State Plan, North Eastern Council, Central Road Fund, Rural Infrastructure Development Fund, National Highways, General Staff Road, China Study Group road etc. The agency wise break up of road lengths are given below: Table 2.1 Roads in Arunachal Pradesh under different agencies. Sl.No Agency Length in Km Category of road Source of funding 1) PWD 6692.00 NH/MDR/ODR State Plan/ NEC/CRF/NH 2) BRO 4524.00 NH/ODR/MDR NH/GS/CSG 3) RWD/Forest 4403.00 ODR/VR State Plan/ PMGSY/Project Total 15619.00 Note: NH-National Highway, MDR-Major District Road, ODR-Ordinary District Road, VR-Village Road. With other modes of communication like railways, air services, inland water transport almost non existent, road is the harbinger of all developments in the state, and the means for delivering services in the social sector programmes like in the health, the education and poverty alleviation. Road development in Arunachal Pradesh also assumes a national importance because of the strategic needs of the defense forces guarding the long international borders with the three neighboring countries of Bhutan, China and Myanmar. 2.2 Density of road With a large geographical area of 83,734 sq.km the state has an average road density of 18.65 Km per 100 sq.km which is the lowest in the country (National

5 average 84 Km per 100 sq.km and the North-Eastern average 60 Km per 100 sq.km). 2.3 General deficiencies of roads Much of the existing road network is just able to provide marginal connectivity only because of the general shortcomings like the need of bridges on major water gaps, inadequate provision of cross drainage structures and weak pavement. The pavement profiles of the roads under PWD are as follows: 1) Earthen-2917.25 Km 2) Metalled-1693.69 Km 3) Carpetted-2081.12 Km Future road development plans will have to provide for taking care of these deficiencies. 2.4 Connectivity positions Out of 157 administrative centres in the state as many as 30 still remain unconnected. A list of the administrative centres showing their connectivity positions is enclosed as Annexure 2.1. Then again, out of the 3880 villages (as per 2001 Census), 2489 are yet to be connected. The connectivity status of the villages in the state are shown below in Table 2.2. Table 2.2: Connectivity status of villages in Arunachal Pradesh S No Population No of habitations connected Left out habitation Total habitation 1 2 3 4 5 1 1000 + 139 33 172 2 500-999 183 82 266 3 250-499 264 216 480 4 <250 805 2157 2962 Total 1391 2489 3880 It may be seen that 76% of the villages in the state has populations less than 250, which is the threshold population for qualifying under PMGSY programme in hilly or desert states or areas. 2.5 Higher cost of construction and maintenance Because of the hilly topography with fragile slopes; the needs for multitude of bridges over numerous rivers and streams; the large number of culverts and

6 lengthy drains required for discharging high surface runoff from heavy rainfalls and snowmelt; and also the vulnerability to earthquake and other natural calamities like landslides, floods etc., construction and maintenance of roads in the hilly state of Arunachal Pradesh is not only cost intensive but also difficult. 2.6 Lack of inter district connectivity A state having vast area with arial distance of over 600 Km from eastern to western tip and the distance from the plains of Assam to the international border on the north being more than 150 Km, at places and with the added problem of poor road infrastructure, communication from one district of Arunachal Pradesh to another often involves incursion into the territory of Assam, the geographical hub of the North East region, with which this state shares interstate boundary of over 700 Km. It thus involves avoidable extra cost and travel time. Travel through Assam, on the other hand, is also uncertain and often unsafe due to floods, frequent bandhs etc. Hence, there is an urgent need for inter district highway network within the territory of Arunachal Pradesh. This aspect will need special attention in the future plans. 2.7 Porter tracks and foot bridges The PWD continues to maintain over 5150 Km porter/mule tracks and more than 5400 mtrs of foot suspension bridges located on these tracks. Though, as per Business Allocation Rules of the Government of Arunachal Pradesh, the subject should be under the Rural Works Department, the efforts to hand over these tracks to RWD for further maintenance and upkeepment has not been successful mainly for want of clear administrative direction. 2.8 Landing ground and helipads In the past some 13 landing grounds were developed at different locations of Arunachal Pradesh. Of these, ten LGs, viz. Ziro, Daporijo, Along, Mechuka, Pasighat, Tuting, Yingkiong, Anini, Tezu and Vijaynagar catered to services of fixed winged planes like Fokker Friendship, others, carribows and later 20 seater Dornier aircrafts, since discontinued. Presently AN-32 planes are operating defense sorties to three LG viz. Mechuka, Tuting and Vijaynagar.

7 Some 100 helipads of different capacities catering to MI-8, MI-17 and Chetak helicopters were also constructed. Besides these, some helipads have also been developed by Border Roads and the Army.

8 III. 10 TH PLAN UNDER STATE SECTOR PERFORMANCE REVIEW 3.1 The development activities undertaken by PWD Arunachal Pradesh through State Plan under Communication sector falls under two sub-heads: a) 5054 & 3054 - Road & Bridge b) 5053 & 3053 - Civil Aviation ROAD & BRIDGE SECTOR PROGRAMME 3.2 Plan size of 10 th Plan Against actual releases totaling Rs.483.56 crores under Road & Bridge sector of PWD during 9 th Plan, the corresponding size of 10 th Plan was agreed at Rs.806.41 crores. Against this the actual allocations conveyed upto 2005-06 worked out to Rs.396.55 crores only. Including the anticipated outlay for 2006-2007 the final 10 th Plan outlay could stand at Rs.537.10 crore only. 3.3 Yearwise outlay and expenditure The yearwise allocations and expenditures during 10th Plan including the anticipated expenditure for 2006-07 are indicated in the Table 3.1. It is observed that the outlays and expenditures under different Annual Plans during 10 th Plan period matched evenly. However, in the spread of outlays and expenditures against different schemes and sub-heads, it could have been a different story. 3.4 Physical targets and achievements The yearwise physical targets and achievements during different Annual Plan periods of 10th Plan upto the financial year 2005-2006 are given in Table 3.2. As can be seen from the Table, that the physical achievements on ground have generally failed to match the yearly targets set. The reasons for this mismatch need to be ascertained though no definite trend is discernible immediately.

9 3.5 Funding programme under State Plan. Funding of works under Road & Bridge sector through State Plan consist of the following: 1) Normal grant 2) Central Road Fund (CRF) 3) Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) 3.6 Programme under Normal grants Till the end of 8 th Plan, most of the road network developed by PWD had been funded as normal free grants without being tied to earmarked programmes. From the onset of 9 th Plan, the free grant component of the State Plan reduced drastically with good chunk of funds being earmarked as ACA under CRF or loans under RIDF from NABARD. Then again, because of the large geographical area and poor road infrastructure in existence, the funds available under State Plan, especially the unearmarked normal grants, have not been near adequate to meet the ever increasing demands. Maintenance load. Erosion of Plan funds also occurred due to the need to earmark funds for revenue type expenditure for maintenance of assets. This had to be resorted to because of non-allocation of maintenance funds under Non- Plan. Funds earmarked for maintenance works by apportioning Plan funds had been pegged around Rs.15.00 crores per year. The allocations against individual schemes under free grant thus have tended to get diluted because of the depletion of resource. This has adversely affected the physical achievements on ground thereby causing time and cost overrun. Porter tracks and foot bridges. Besides the normal Roads and Bridge programmes, the PWD has also been undertaking construction and maintenance of porter/mule tracks and foot bridges under state plan through normal grant only without any designated allocations. There are around 100 porter/mule tracks with aggregate length of over 4150 Km. There are also a large number of foot suspension bridges with total length of over 5400 m,

10 located mostly in the inaccessible areas in the remote upper reaches. The 30 unconnected administrative centres of the State and numerous villages unlinked by road are served through these porter/mule tracks. Spillover schemes. There are as many as 1031 schemes likely to spill over to 11 th Plan. Of these 88 are last mile schemes with investment of above 80%. There are also 160 schemes with financial progress from 60% to 80%. Adequate funds could not be mobilized for completion of these schemes because of the general resource constraints under State Plan. An analysis of the ongoing schemes is given in Annexure 3.1. Inclusion of new schemes. Public pressure also tended to cause aberration in planning process with induction of new schemes in the face of many ongoing schemes. A solution of this problem could come only through strong political will. Problem of revised estimates. There are also over 445 schemes needing revised or re-revised sanctions. The process of obtaining revised sanction is getting more complicated because of the long time overrun and lack of clarity about the procedure often dictated by the State Finance. 3.7 Programme under CRF The Central Road Fund is a designated fund for development of road infrastructure and other related activities like road safety, research in the field of highway and transportation, capacity building etc. The fund is generated through cess on consumption of petrol and diesel. The CRF is administered through the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, Government of India. Allocations are made as ACA and actual releases are made against submission of UC. The programme is subgrouped into three categories (1) Normal or state category with 100% funding from the Ministry (2) Inter State Connectivity (ISC) category with 100% support from GOI and (3) Economically Important (EI) category with 50% of the cost funded by the Centre and 50% borne by the State Government as state share.

11 So far 30 schemes under CRF normal category have been taken up under PWD at total sanctioned cost of Rs.114.10 crores. Besides these, one scheme under ISC category and one schemes under EI category are being executed by the Department. Another scheme for construction of bridges on Dambuk-Paglam road has been accepted in principle for funding under ISC category. Of the 30 state category schemes, 13 schemes have been completed. The total investment upto 31.03.2007 including the anticipated expenditure during 2006-07 would worked out to Rs.85.05 crores. The one ISC category scheme is nearing completion. As many as 4 state category CRF schemes are also likely to be completed during 2006-2007. The remaining 13 schemes under state category, the one under EI category and one under new the ISC category scheme are likely to spill over beyond 10 th Plan. Details of the 33 schemes taken up under the three category of CRF are given in Annexure 3.2 enclosed. 3.8 Programme under RIDF Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) is a loan scheme of the Centre for infrastructure development in rural areas. It is administered through the National Bank of Agricultural and Rural Development (NABARD). Under different tranches of RIDF loans from RIDF V to RIDF-XI, the PWD Arunachal Pradesh took up 22 road and bridge projects at a total cost of Rs.238.83 crores, with a loan component of Rs.198.71 crores. Out of these, 7 projects costing Rs.34.62 crores (with a loan component of Rs.27.24 crores) have been completed and the remaining 14 schemes are in different stages of completion with one scheme being abandoned. Some 6 schemes will be completed during 2006-2007. As many as 8 schemes are expected to spill over beyond 10 th Plan with financial implication of Rs.37.69 crores. Details of the sanctioned RIDF projects are enclosed as Annexure: 3.3. 3.9 Other minor programme Besides above normal programmes under 5054 & 3054 Road and Bridge sector under State Plan, some minor road and bridge schemes are also taken up under

12 State Plan through funding from the Department of Tirap & Changlang (DOTC). The scheme selected are need based and planned for completion within a year and should normally not spill over. However, it is seen that priorities and investment decisions change with change of Legislators. CIVIL AVIATION SECTOR 3.10 Landing grounds and helipads PWD also undertakes construction works of landing ground and helipad under Civil Aviation sector with funds administered by Civil Aviation Department. During the 10 th Plan period upto 2005-2006 budget coverage to the tune of Rs.322.01 lacs (Eastern Zone only) was received.

13 IV 10 TH PLAN PROGRAMMES UNDER EXTERNAL FUNDING-PERFORMANCE REVIEW 4.1 Programme under external funding Under external funding outside the State Plan the following programmes were taken up during 10 th Plan. 1) North Eastern Council (NEC) 2) Non-lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) 3) National Highways 4) Special Accelerated Road Development Programme 5) Additional Central Assistance 6) Project Specific Assistance 7) Rashtriya Swam Vikash Yojana (RSVY) 4.2 NEC Programme Completed projects. Till the end of 8 th Plan as many as 17 projects in Arunachal Pradesh covering 1 bridge and 16 roads with aggregate length of 1272.40 Km had been completed combinely by the PWD and BRO under funding from NEC. Details of the roads are enclosed as Annexure: 4.1. Maintenance obligation. Over the years, some cross transfers of roads have taken place between the PWD and BRO. A few roads have also been included under General Staff (GS) road programme of the Defense Ministry. Thus at the end of 10 th Plan (2002-2007) there will be 12 completed NEC roads in Arunachal Pradesh with total length of 680.00 Km and maintenance obligation of Rs.12.25 crores per annum (taking the maintenance yardstick @ Rs.1.80 crores per Km per year based on the norms as recommended by the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways). 9 th Plan projects. During the 9 th Plan as many as four road projects were taken up. The details are given in Table 4.2 below. Of these the first project has been completed. The remaining three projects taken up under the Prime Minister s Initiative for NE region shall be completed by March 2007.

14 Sl. No Table 4.1 Status of Schemes taken up during the 9th Plan under NEC (Fin. Fig. in Rs. Lakhs) Cumulative Financial Name of the Scheme Approved Cost Achievement upto Tenth Plan(upto March 2006) Release of Fund Expenditure Present Physical Status 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 A Ninth Plan and Pre-Ninth Plan Schemes 1 Dirok- Deomali Road 588.95 589.00 588.95 Completed completed (SH:C/O of 6(six) Bridges PDC 2 Margerita- Changlang Road (37.48 Km) 2684.41 2627.00 2363.83 Road Completed and Bridge Works in progress. 03/2007 3 Khonsa-Hukanjuri-Naharkatia Road (35.00 Km) 2692.75 2907.00 2536.48 Road Completed and Bridge Works in progress. 03/2007 4 Jote- Balijan Road (47 Km) 4017.96 3124.72 3124.64 TOTAL 9984.07 9247.72 8024.95 In advanced stage of construction. 03/2007 10 th Plan projects. Under 10 th Plan initially 13 projects were identified for Survey & Investigation. The list is enclosed as Annexure:4.2. Of these finally only four projects were shortlisted as given in Table 4.2 below. One of the possible reasons for heavy decrease in the number of projects finally selected from the list earlier approved for S & I works could be NEC s preponderance with interstate category of projects over economic importance category. Out of the four projects finally approved, EFC clearances have been obtained in respect of the first two projects. As regards, the remaining two projects, EFC clearance from GOI are still under process. All these four projects are likely to spill over beyond 10 th Plan.

15 Table 4.2. Sl. No Status of Schemes taken up during the 10th Plan under NEC Name of the Scheme Approved Cost Financial Achievement during Tenth Plan (upto March 2006) Release of Expenditure Fund PDC (Fin Fig in Rs.Lakhs) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Present Status 1 Pasighat-Ledum-Tene-Koyu Road (60.00 Km) 4636.00 1886.00 1930.37 2007-08 In Progress 2 Laimekuri-Nari-Telam-Rema Camp (61.00 Km) 6420.00 1355.00 1157.05 2007-08 In Progress 3 Upgradation of Digboi-Pengri- Bordumsa-Namchik (Miao) Mahadevpur Road (40 Km) (76.00 Km) 5394.00 - - - EFC Awaited 4 Seppa-Chyangtajo (Phase-I:0-34 Km) (81.00 Km) 8486.59 - - - EFC Awaited TOTAL 24936.59 3241.00 3087.42 4.3 National Highway Present programme. The coverage of NH programme in Arunachal Pradesh is rather poor. The total length of the three existing National Highways in the State viz. NH-52, NH-52A and NH-153 is limited to 419.33 Km. Of this 386.81 Km covering NH-52 and NH-52 is under the BRO and the remaining 32.52 Km pertaining to NH-153 is under PWD. The details are given in Table 4.3 below. Table: 4.3 Details of existing NH in Arunachal Pradesh. S No Reach covered Length Agency NH No in KM I. NH 52 - Jonai to Sitpani 1) Jonai-Pasighat-Ranaghat-Mebo-Dambuk-Bomjur 103.50 Project NH-52 (570.00 to 613.50 km ) Udayak BRO 2) Bomjir-Iphipani-Roing(Meka)-Koronu-Paya (613.50 to 64.29 -do- NH-52 677.78 km) 3) Paya-Digaru (km 677.78 to 688.00) 10.22 -do- NH-52 4) Digaru-Tezu (688.00 to 705.90 km) 17.90 -do- NH-52 5) Tezu-Tohogam (705.90 to 735.10 km) 29.20 -do- NH-52 6) Tohogam-Brahmakund (705.10 to 749.80 km) 14.70 -do- NH-52 7) Brahmakund-Tri junction-chowkham (749.80 to 56.13 -do- NH-52 805.93 km) 8) Chowkham-Sitapani (805.80 to 805.93 km) 39.00 -do- NH-52 Sub Total 335.94

16 II. NH 52A - Banderdewa to Gohpur 1) Banderdewa-Itanagar 31.50 Project NH-52A Vartak BRO 2) Itanagar-Gohpur 20.37 -do- NH-52A Sub Total 51.87 III. NH 153 - Jairampur-Pangshu pass 32.52 PWD, AP NH-153 Total 419.33 Originally the NH-52A was under State PWD. Subsequently it was transferred to BRO under a directive from the then Ministry of Surface Transport (MOST), now MOSRT&H. Later the NH-153 covering a part of the old Stillwell Road from Jairampur to Pangshu Pass has been entrusted to PWD Arunachal Pradesh. The works are being executed through Direct Payment system. Barring the construction of bridges, the other works covering cross drainage structure and widening and pavement are in an advanced stage. The total outlay received against this work till March 2006 works out to Rs.16.19 crores. The details of works undertaken against NH-153 are given in Annexure: 4.3. 4.4 Projects under NLCPR The Non-lapsable Central Pool of Resources is a facility under the Central Government created by pooling of the resources of the Central Ministries/Department accrued due to shortfall in expenditure from the mandatory 10% of the gross budgetary support (GBS) to be utilized in NE region. During the financial year 2005-2006, the Ministry of DONER sanctioned 13 road and bridge projects to a total cost of Rs.17988.30 crores under NLCPR. Proposals have been submitted for obtaining confirmatory AA & ES of the State Government. Tendering and mobilization processes have been initiated. Actual implementation of these schemes will begin in earnest from the current FY. Thus all these projects are likely to spill over beyond 2006-07. The details of the projects are enclosed as Annexure:4.4.

17 4.5 Projects under SARDP-NE Programme and phases. The Special Accelerated Road Development Programme for the North Eastern Region (SARDP-NE) is a new initiative of the Central Government for development of road infrastructure in NE region, covering both NH and state roads. The programme originally consisted of three phases viz. A, B and C. Phase A consisted of programme for four laning or two laning of selected stretches of existing NH network to be undertaken through the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) as BOT projects. Under Phase B all district headquarters and the state capitals in the North-East are to be linked by double lane or improved single lane roads to the nearest National Highway network. As many 11 road and bridge projects from Arunachal Pradesh with aggregate length of 1757 Km and at total projected cost of Rs.1757 crores were included under Phase B. The list is enclosed as Annexure: 4.5. Of these three roads of length 92 Km belonged to the PWD while the remaining roads and bridges were GS roads under BRO. The Phase C programme consisted originally of the 8 roads in border areas of Arunachal Pradesh which had been submitted before the Foreign Secretary during his visit to Aruanchal Pradesh during 26 and 27 August, 2004. The original list of 8 roads of aggregate length 1243 Km including the Indo Myanmar road and two inter-basin roads estimated to cost Rs.1272 crores are enclosed under Annexure:4.6. Later, one road under Phase C viz. Road from Lumla to Tashigaon via Dudumghar (36 Km) was transferred under Phase A. The remaining seven other projects of Phase C were finally merged with Phase B. Non of the projects selected has however, been started on ground. There is lack of clarity about the agencies to take up the different projects. Mainly because of this the preparation of DPR has been slow.

18 4.6 Other programme Besides the above programmes, some road construction are being taken up under One Time Additional Central Assistance and Special Plan Assistance. The schemes under these programmes are selected on a need based manner and are to be completed within a period of one year. Works have also been taken up under Rashtriya Swas Vikash Yojana (RSVY) programme in Upper Subansiri District. A few road and bridge projects were also taken up in Upper Subansiri District under funding from the Ministry of Tribal Welfare, GOI.

19 V. 11 th PLAN PROGRAMMES UNDER STATE SECTOR 5.1 Focus areas ROAD & BRIDGE SECTOR During 11 th Plan the thrust will have to be on increasing the coverage of road network in the state, especially to those unconnected administrative centres and villages by raising the road density from the present level of 18.65 Km per 100 sq. Km. As per the goal of Road Development Vision 2020, it is proposed to step up the road density from the present level to 25 Km per 100 Sq. Km by 2020, the horizon year of the perspective plan. This would mean that by end of the perspective plan the State should possess a road length of 20936 Km. Thus, some 5317 Km of new roads (20936-15619) will have to be added by middle of the13th Plan. Then again, assuming equal distribution of new roads to be added over the three Five Year Plan periods viz. 11 th, 12 th, and 13 th Plan, some 2127 Km of new roads will have to be constructed during 11 th Plan. Further, taking the current share of PWD roads in the total road network in the state as the basis, (about 42.85%), the new constructions to be taken up under the State agency will work out to about 911 Km. Thus by the end of 11 th Plan period the road density in the state is expected to go up to 21.19 Km/100 sq.km. 5.2 Projected size of 11 th Plan Against new projects. For 911 Km of new road the investment required will work out to around Rs.911 crore (taking a conservative rate of Rs.100 lakhs per Km). Then again about 30% of this is expected to be made available from external funding sources. Hence the actual budgetary provision required for construction of new roads and bridges under PWD through State Plan, during 11 th Plan period, will work out to about Rs.638 crores. For completion of spillover schemes. Then again considering the fact that a large number of 10 th Plan schemes are expected to spill over to 11 th Plan, an adequate resource support has to be made for completing the spillover schemes of 10 th Plan. The details of fund requirement for completing these schemes are as follows:

20 a) For completion of last-mile schemes : Rs.19.03 crores (physical progress above 60%) b) For completion of balance spillover schemes: Rs.109.85 crores c) For completion of spillover schemes where Revised sanction is required: Rs.93.44 crores Total: Rs. 222.32 crores Say Rs.222.00 crores. Details can be seen from Annexure 3.1. Improvement of existing deficient roads. On the other hand about 25% of the existing fair weather roads under the Department (about 3445 Km) will require improvement/upgradation to provide minimum connectivity with at least one layer of GSB or WBM, adequate number of CD structures and minimum required bridges. The total cost involved would work out to Rs.215 crore (taking @ 25.00 lakhs/km). The total outlay required for 11 th Plan will workout to Rs.215.00 crores. 5.3 Normal grant The average allocation under unearmarked normal grants during 10 th Plan stood at 36%. It may be pointed out that maintenance obligation, the spillover schemes from the previous plan periods are to be met up from normal grants. Hence there is a need to enhance the allocations under normal grants. Out of the estimated total outlay of Rs.1075.00 crores during 11 th Plan it is propose that Rs.797.00 crore (74%) will be as normal grant. 5.4 CRF programme Spillover projects. Incomplete schemes from 10 th Plan, including 13 schemes under State category, one Inter State Connectivity (ISC) category and two of Economic Importance (EI) category, will spill over to 11 th Plan. The details of schemes can be seen from Annexure 3.2. The fund requirement for completing the projects will work out to about Rs. 29.05 crores. Resource base. As per the present trend with annual accrual standing at about Rs.16.22 crore (during 2005-06) the total availability of fund under CRF during

21 the 11 th Plan period with an annual mark up of about 10%, is expected to be around Rs.123.00 crore. The balance of Rs.93.95 crore after meeting up the obligation towards completing the ongoing projects could be deployed for funding new projects. New projects. Some 36 new schemes have been identified for funding under CRF. The list is enclosed as Annexure 5.1. It is expected that for future programme under CRF, schemes will be selected from this list. 5.5 RIDF Programme Spillover projects. Out of the 22 ongoing schemes under RIDF, some 8 projects are expected spill over to 11 th Plan. The financial implication would work out to a tune of about Rs.37.69 crores. Details can be seen from Annexure 3.3. Resource base. The allocation in State Plan under RIDF has remained static at about Rs.28.00 crore each year. Taking a modest increment of 5% per year, the outlay under RIDF for 11 th Plan could be assumed as Rs.155.00 crore. Thus the fund available for new projects, after meeting up the obligations for spill over projects from 10 th Plan will work out to about Rs.117.31 crores. New projects. A list containing new projects has been prepared for funding under RIDF. The projects selected for implementation during 11 th Plan would be selected from this tentative list. The details are given in Annexure 5.2. 5.5 Total outlay and breakup As seen from above the size of 11 th Plan against R&B sector under State sector will work out to about Rs.1075.00 crores. Considering the present trend of funding for different programmes under State Plan the break of the outlay could be as follows : (i) Free grant: Rs. 797.00 crore ( 74 %) (ii) CRF : Rs.123.00 crore ( 11%) (iii) RIDF loan etc: Rs. 155.00 crore (15 %)

22 5.7 Phasing of outlay The total outlay of Rs.1075.00 crore for 11 th Plan is proposed to be phased over five Annual Plans as follows:- Annual Plan Funding 1) Normal grant Total 2007-2008 2008-2009 (Rs. crores) 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 797.00 130.00 144.00 158.00 174.00 191.00 2) CRF 123.00 20.27 22.20 24.39 26.76 29.38 3) RIDF 155.00 28.45 29.42 31.46 32.25 33.42 Total: 1075.00 178.72 195.62 213.85 233.01 253.80

23 VI. 11 TH PLAN - EXTERNALLY FUNDED PROGRAMME 6.1 Besides the normal programme under State Plan, an increasing number of projects under Transport and Communication sector are being funded through Central programmes like NH, NEC, NLCPR, SARDP-NE etc. During 11 th Plan funding through the Central programmes will come to play a vital role in the development of infrastructure under T&C sector. 6.2 Road & Bridge projects under NEC The North Eastern Council will continue to play an important role in building roads and bridges in Arunachal Pradesh during 11 th Plan. The main focus of the programme will be completion of spill over schemes. Besides these, a few priority green field projects will also be initiated during the Plan period. Ongoing schemes. All the ongoing projects from 9 th Plan are proposed to be completed before the onset of 11 th Plan. On the other hand all the four projects initiated during 10 th Plan projects are likely spill over to 11 th Plan. Of these, two projects viz. Interstate road from Laimekuri in Assam to Nari-Telam-Rema camp (65 Km - 61 Km in AP) and Upgradation of Pasighat-Ledum-Tene-Koyu road (60 Km) are in progress. The remaining two roads viz. Upgradation of Pengri- Namchik-Mahadevpur road (40 Km) and Seppa-Chayangtajo road (81 Km) are yet to receive EFC. The financial involvement for completion of these four projects from 10 th Plan will be around Rs.191.17 crores. New projects identified. Apart from the above works, some 18 new road projects have been identified for inclusion under 11 th Plan of NEC. The list is enclosed as Annexure 6.1. The total projected cost of these 18 new roads would work out to Rs.1042.40 crores. The final selection of the new R&B projects to be taken up during 11 th Plan of the Council could be done on the basis of this list. A need for change in approach for selection of projects. As a selection criteria, the NEC gives priority on inter state road projects over roads of economic importance. As a general policy objective the approach of NEC could be considered as admirable. However, when seen against practical needs on ground, the flaw in the Council s policy becomes apparent. Under the present

24 dispensation the number of projects that can be sanctioned against a given state will depend on how many and how long are the interstate boundaries shared by the state with its neighbours. More the number of neighbouring states and larger the length of boundaries shared, more would be the projects and plan allocations likely to accrue to the state. Besides above population of a state is also taken as one of the criteria for deciding the size of investment package. Under this scenario, Assam being in the hub of the NE region and with highest population stands to cover the maximum number of projects. And that is what has been happening in the past and likely to continue unless there is a paradigm shift in the funding pattern of the NEC. For a vast state like Arunachal Pradesh having an area of 84743 sq.km. and distance between the eastern and western tips being over 600 km and expanse of territory from foothills to the international border being more than 150 km, preponderance with interstate nature of projects will restrict the location of schemes only to the areas in the vicinity of the interstate border with Assam with which it shares boundary of over 700 km. Thus, under this situation other parts of the state specially those towards the border areas will never be able to benefit from development initiatives under NEC. Hence, there is a need to have a fresh look on the interstate concept and base the selection of projects on more realistic parameters like economic importance, as is being done for new member state of Sikkim. Resource base and phasing Taking the outlay of Rs.269.03 crores under Transport and Communication sector during 10 th Plan as the base and adopting a modest mark up of 15% the resource base for Arunachal Pradesh under 11 th Plan of NEC could be taken as Rs.310.00 crores. This may be phased over five Annual Plans as follows: 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Total 46.00 53.00 61.00 70.00 80.00 310.00

25 6.3 Development of Airports under NEC The funding for development of airports in Arunachal Pradesh during 11 th Plan is expected to be done jointly under the NEC and the AAI as done in the case of other projects in NE region during 10 th Plan and earlier. Ongoing projects. The two airports at Pasighat and Tezu for 50 seater aircrafts, taken up during 9 th Plan were subsequently abandoned with further funding stopped for want of EFC clearance. These two airports will have to be revived and completed during 11 th Plan. The updated expected completion cost of the two airports will be about Rs.19.40 crores for Tezu airport and Rs.27.40 crores for Pasighat airport. New projects. The thrust for development in Civil Aviation sector in the State, however, will be focused on establishment of a new airport near Itanagar, roughly expected to cost around Rs.200 crores. Supports will also be necessary for S&I and consultancy services. There will also be need to explore the possibility and viability for development of new airports at other potential sites like at Yiklet near Yingkiong in Upper Siang district and Roing in Lower Dibang Valley. Improvement of existing landing grounds. The existing landing grounds at Ziro, Daporijo, Along, Mechuka, Tuting, Alinye and Vijaynagar, which had earlier been air linked with services of Vayudoot through 20 seater. Dornier aircrafts, also need to be improved with better infrastructure support for operation of hopping services with small capacity fixed winged planes that will supplement the service of the present air network in the NE region with 50 seater ATR crafts. 6.4 Bus/Truck Terminus & Transit facilities under NEC With Arunachal Pradesh being solely dependent on road network for communication, provision of terminal and way side facilities are important needs of the road users. Presently there is near complete lack of such facilities.

26 Interstate Bus/Truck Terminus. The 10 th Plan of NEC had a provision of Rs.3.03 crores was made for construction of interstate bus terminus (ISBT) at Itanagar. However, it could not be utilized mainly for want of suitable land. But the bus/truck terminals are essential needs that the State capital town can hardly do without. The proposal will have to be revived during 11 th Plan. The cost of proposed ISBT to be located at Itanagar or Naharlagun will work out to about Rs.10.00 crores. Wayside amenities. We need wayside amenities with hygienic eating places and clean comfort facilities at the 17 entry gates located at isolated places viz. Balemu, Foothills, Bhalukpong, Seijosa, Balijan, Hollongi, Gumto, Kimin, Likabali, Ruksin, Santipur, Sunpura, Dirok gate, namchik gate, Namdang gate, Hukanjuri and Ranglua. The cost of providing these transit facilities will work out to about Rs.8.50 crores. 6.5 National Highway One of the major goals of 20 Years Road Plan of India (Lucknow Plan 1980-2000), was to bring every part of the country within the distance of 50 Km from a National Highway. Under this scenario, the NH network in Arunachal Pradesh would work out to a minimum length of 1675 Km. Against this backdrop the three NHs in the State, viz. NH-52, NH-52A and NH-153 have a combined length of 419.33 Km only. Then again the existing NH network covers only a small fringe area of the State close to the border with Assam. A ban on declaration of new NH during 10 th Plan prevented any signified effort towards proposing new NH in the state. Hence, during the 11 th Plan period efforts will have to be intensified to increase the coverage of NH network in the State. The target length of NH in the state at the end of 11 th Plan could be pegged at 850 Km, twice the present length. The thrust will be on inter district connectivity and better linkage from NH-52, running along the north bank of Brahmaputra in Assam. East-West Highway. Construction of East-West Highway, a National Highway within the territory of Arunachal Pradesh providing inter-district connectivity is a long cherished dream of the people in the State. The importance of this road

27 has also been reflected in Shukla Commission Report (1996-1997). A concept note on this proposal was submitted to the Government of India. The proposal envisages a National Highway running in east-west direction along the middle belt of the State covering areas with higher concentration of population and more productivity in terms of agriculture and horticulture. The project consists of two sectors viz. (i) Western sector and (ii) Eastern sector. The Western sector will cover the road stretch starting from Balipara on NH-52 in Assam and terminating on NH-52 at Pasighat in East Siang district covering important places like Bhalukpong, Nichipu, Seppa, Sagalee, Doimukh, Nirjuli (Itanagar), Yazali, Ziro, Daporijo, Along and Pangin over a distance of about 939 Km. The Eastern sector, on the other hand, will cover a length of 320 Km from Mahadevpur on NH-52 to Bimlapur in Assam via Bordumsa, Namchik, Jairampur, Changlang, Khonsa, Longding and Ranglua. Details of different segments under the two sectors of the East-West Highways envisaged are shown in Annexure 6.2 enclosed. The new NH will be developed by upgrading the existing road network of ODR and MDR categories to NH standards, and constructing bridges over missing water gaps where required. The total cost of the project at today s price level is estimated to be around Rs 1510.80 crores. The upgradation work is proposed to be taken up in phases and stages starting from Itanagar towards Seppa via Sagalee, Rilo, Pijirang etc. and Itanagar to Ziro via Hoj and Yazali. It is proposed that both the segments will be submitted before the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways for declaration as NH during 11 th Plan. 6.6 Road & Bridge projects under NLCPR Sanctioned projects. As many 13 road and bridge projects were sanctioned by the Ministry of DONER under Non-lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) during 2005-2006 and fund to the extant of Rs. 5.077 crores (about 30% of the total cost) was released as first instalments. The expenditure till the end of 2006-2007 is expected to be limited to releases under first instalment. The

28 balance works costing about Rs.12.91 crores will spill over to 11 th Plan. The list of sanctioned schemes can be seen from Annexure 4.4. New works proposed. A list of 31 new schemes with total projected cost of Rs.895.27 crore has been forwarded by the State Government to Ministry of DONER, Government of India. A copy is enclosed as Annexure 6.3. This list will form the basis for further selection of projects under NLCPR during 11 th Plan. 6.7 Projects under SARDP-NE The projects in Arunachal Pradesh under the Special Accelerated Road Development Programme in NE region (SARDP-NE) formulated in 2004-2005 is yet to take off. With preparation of DPRs yet to gather momentum, all the projects under the programme are expected to spill over to 11 th Plan. Detailed list of the projects under SARDP-NE can be seen from Annexure 4.5 & 4.6. The total financial implication involved for implementing SARDP-NE, Phases A & B, will work out to about Rs.1802.00 crores. Pending decision on implementing agencies. The question on the implementing agency or the agencies to be entrusted with the works under SARDP-NE is yet to be fully resolved. The Government of Arunachal Pradesh was of the view that execution of the projects should be entrusted to both the BRO and State PWD on a principle of as-is-where-is basis, with the respective owner agency carrying out the work pertaining to the road (or the portion of a road) under the agency concerned. In the case of green field projects which are yet to be started the work could be entrusted to BRO. On the other hand, the GOI, seems to have intended that the entire programme would be placed solely under the BRO. BRO s capacity overstretched. It may be noted that BRO is already heavily engaged with construction roads under the General Staff and China Study Group programmes of the Ministry of Defence (MOD). It is also involved with upgradation works of a number of National Highways like NH-52, NH-52A etc. under the MOSRT&H. Thus the ability of BRO to take up additional workloads

29 under SARDP-NE is debatable. Moreover, since it is the avowed objective of the Central Government to decentralize development activities in the country, participation of the state agencies in implementation of SARDP-NE, an important programme of GOI for infrastructure development in NE region, could be a major step towards mainstreaming of a fringe state like Arunachal Pradesh. The issues involved need to be resolved if need be with the intervention of the PMO. 6.8 Border Trade Routes In the past, limited cross border trading activities were carried out generally under barter system through various traditional land routes between Arunachal Pradesh and the neighbouring countries like Bhutan, Tibet and Burma. However, trade through these routes could not be sustained mainly due to nonexistence of required support facilities, poor condition of roads, and, to an extent, due to souring of relationship among the neighbouring countries. Now in the backdrop of changing global economic scenario, there is an emerging need to re-open these trade routes. There are seven such identified trade routes between India and the three neighbouring countries which could be reopened with enabling conditions as good roads and necessary cross border facilities. The list is enclosed as Annexure 6.4. An investment to the tune of about Rs.173.00 crore would be required for developing necessary communication facilities to these potential cross border trade centres. 6.9 Roads to Tourist Destinations Approved Travel Circuits. There are eight approved tourist circuits in Aruanchal Pradesh. The main routes and their extensions and spurs serving these circuits require various improvement and upgradation measures. Some of these improvement needs are covered under different programmes like NH, CRF, SARDP-NE etc. The approximate cost for undertaking construction, improvement or upgradation of roads pertaining to these approved tourist circuits will work out to around Rs.1477.30 crores. The details of these routes are given in Annexure 6.5.

30 Identified new Travel Circuits. As many as six prospective new Tourist Circuits have been identified. They cover areas which are not covered by the existing approved circuits. These new circuits are expected to supplement and enhance the tourist flow into the state by enlarging the available options. The detailed list of the proposed new Tourist Circuit are given in Annexure 6.6. 6.10 Urban roads The urban population has grown at a accelerated rate of 158% during 1981-91 (against a national average of 36.09%) and 101.29% during 1991-2001. This high growth rate could reflect a phenomenon of in-migration of people from the rural areas to the urban pockets in search of better facilities of health, education, commercial and socio-economic activities. It could also indicate an influx from outside the State, particularly in Itanagar and Naharlagun, which have recorded high decadal growth rates of 111.36 % and 87.31% during 1981-1991 and 1991-2001, respectively. Such influxes into the urban locations has necessitated the improvement and upgradation of the existing road infrastructure of the Urban Centres. Declared Urban Centres. The Government of Arunachal Pradesh has notified 22 towns as Urban Centres viz. Tawang, Bomdila, Dirang, Seppa, Sagalee, Itanagar Capital Complex including Naharlagun, Nirjuli, Doimukh and Banderdewa, Ziro, Daporijo, Basar, Along, Pasighat, Yingkiong, Roing, Tezu, Namsai, Hawai, Khonsa, Deomali, Jairampur, Changlang, Miao and Longding. The total length of roads in these Urban Centres works out to 559.07 Km. The cost for improving the existing roads along with development of side drains, footpath etc. works out to Rs. 335.44 crores Lakhs taking @ Rs.60 Lakhs per Km. The details are given in Annexure 6.7. Potential Growth Centres. Then again, 30 other potential Growth Centres have been identified in the State. The investment required for improving the existing road network in these Potential Growth Centres aggregating to a total length of 168.38 Km will work out to about Rs.101.03 crores. The details are given in Annexure 6.8.