Dehradun: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami announced on Friday that roads are being extended to small villages across the state under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana (PMGSY).
Dhami revealed that with the establishment of clusters for standard population sizes, road connectivity will now reach even low-population settlements in Uttarakhand. The fourth phase of the PMGSY scheme will soon commence, focusing on connecting settlements with a minimum population of 250 to all-weather roads.
The Central Government has issued guidelines for the fourth phase, under which the Uttarakhand Rural Development Department has surveyed 1,490 rural roads, totaling 8,750 km in length, for construction. Originally launched in 2000 to link villages with roadways, the PMGSY has seen the completion of its first three phases, which connected villages with at least 250 residents based on the 2001 census data. With the latest guidelines, the central government aims to connect all settlements with a minimum population of 250 according to the 2011 census.
Radhika Jha, Secretary of Rural Development, stated that following the survey, the preparation of Detailed Project Reports (DPR) for these roads is underway and will soon be submitted to the central government for final approval. The project will also include the construction of culverts, causeways, and necessary bridges.
As per the scheme’s guidelines, population assessments will not be based solely on revenue villages or panchayats but will include residents within a specified radius. In Uttarakhand, this population measurement will account for settlements within a 1.5 km radius, while in border development blocks, it will encompass settlements within a 10 km radius. This initiative is designed to benefit Uttarakhand, a state with a relatively small population.
