The union cabinet Wednesday gave a special sanction of Rs.710 crore to build roads under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in the border state of Jammu and Kashmir, a statement said.
According to the statement, the money, to be given in two tranches, will be used to meet the cost of land acquisition and cover compensatory afforestation, private land and structures, and will enable the state to expedite completion of the PMGSY projects.
The cabinet also approved the change in the nomenclature "Hill States" under the PMGSY to "Special Category States" to include Assam, on a par with other northeastern states.
This would increase the central share from 75 percent to 90 percent in Assam.
The PMGSY was launched in 2000 with the objective of providing all-weather connectivity to all unconnected habitations with a population of 500 persons or more, desert areas, tribal areas and 82 selected tribal and backward districts, as identified under the Integrated Action Plan (IAP) being implemented in Maoist-affected areas.
