Kerala state
PWD has initiated a number of steps to attract private investment in the sector
and to instil confidence in investors.
Proactive
steps taken by the Kerala PWD:
- Established
a State-level Empowered Committee, headed by Principal Secretary-PWD, to
oversee implementation of projects.
- A multi-disciplinary
project management team has also been constituted within the PWD.
- Completed
a comprehensive Institutional Development Study and prepared an Institutional
Strengthening Action Plan (ISAP). The ISAP recommendations are being implemented
in a time-bound manner.
- Constituted
four dedicated working groups and a committee of Chief Engineers, from within
the organization, to fine-tune and expedite the ISAP implementation.
- A draft Road
Development Policy for Kerala has been formulated and deliberations are
on to finalise the policy.
- The Kerala
Tolls Act (1983) was studied with a view to facilitating greater private
sector participation in the road sector.
- The Kerala
Road Fund Act was enacted in November 2001, establishing the Kerala Road
Fund administered by a Road Board.
- The GoK drafted
a Medium-Term Fiscal Plan (MTFP) for fund requirements and financing sources
of road sector projects. The MTFP includes
- (i) adequate
and timely counterpart project funding,
- (ii) increasing
road maintenance allocations to meet prescribed norms in the second
year of the project; and
- (iii)
progressive clearing of pending bills to contractors and reduction in
payables position to within 4 months of expenditure, within the next
two years.
- The Roads
and Bridges Development Corporation of Kerala (RBDCK) was created to promote
private investment in the road sector and improve road infrastructure efficiency
by corporatising some traditional PWD functions.
- Enacted the
Kerala Highway Protection Act (1999) in order to protect highway corridors
from encroachments, regulate ribbon developments and prevent undesirable
land use practices;
- GoK recently
completed one major bridge project on a BOT basis. Other BOT schemes to
build NH bypasses will begin soon.
- Several key
road sector studies, such as, Core Road Network Study to identify road and
bridge projects amenable for private financing, a study on road maintenance
planning, and several road safety studies, have been completed.
- The Resettlement
and Rehabilitation (R&R) Policy Framework has been approved and ratified.
Besides this the Sectoral Environmental Assessment (SEA), Environmental
Impact Assessment (EIA), Environmental Management Plans (EMP) and Resettlement
Action Plan (RAP) have been completed and made available to the World Bank's
Public Information Center and in project districts for public review and
comments.
- An international
road safety specialist was appointed to train PWD staff to analyse accident
sites, assist them in improving black spots, and help the PWD to develop
a road safety strategic action plan. A Road Safety Action Plan has been
drawn up.
- Computerisation
of PWD is being done in a phased manner. Project Financial Management System
(PFMS) has been developed in the project office and adapting this facility
into PWD offices has commenced.
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