Kochi Corporation clears 30 projects worth ₹1,500 crore for Urban Challenge Fund

The UCF seeks to bring about a fundamental shift in the development vision by encouraging urban local bodies to adopt market-based financing mechanisms for urban development. File photo

The Kochi Corporation Council on Tuesday approved a concept note covering 30 projects worth over ₹1,500 crore identified by the civic body for potential funding under the Centre’s Urban Challenge Fund (UCF) as part of its Kochi@2050 vision.

The concept note will initially be forwarded to the State government. Detailed project reports (DPRs) will be prepared only for projects approved by the government for submission to the Centre. The UCF seeks to bring about a fundamental shift in the development vision by encouraging urban local bodies to adopt market-based financing mechanisms for urban development. Under the scheme, which will run from 2026 to 2031, the Union government will provide 25% of the project cost as a grant, with the stipulation that at least 50% of the cost be raised through bonds, bank loans and public-private partnerships (PPPs).

Major projects include the Kaloor integrated mobility hub (₹150-₹200 crore), Kochi civic tower project at Kacheripady (₹175 crore), Vypeen integrated mobility hub (₹75-₹100 crore), city-wide bus stand modernisation (₹50-₹75 crore), development of Palluruthy relief settlement into an integrated rehabilitation, care and livelihood campus (₹70 crore), Koker’s cultural district (₹80 crore), Kochi 3D digital twin and urban intelligence platform (₹35 crore), Brahmapuram construction waste processing and circular resource recovery facility (₹32 crore), and a modern slaughterhouse in West Kochi (₹20 crore).

Mayor V.K. Minimol said Kochi would be the first municipal body to submit concept notes for the UCF, under which ₹5,000 crore had been allocated to the State and would be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. “Revenue-generating projects have been prioritised as per the UCF guidelines. The concept note will be updated based on feasible projects proposed by councillors and the identification of more land. Municipal bonds and green bonds will be prioritised as funding sources apart from the UCF,” she said.

V.A. Sreejith, LDF parliamentary party leader, said the Corporation could not afford to prioritise revenue-generating projects alone, as the livelihood and welfare of all sections of society had to be taken into account for the sustainable development of the city. He criticised the decision to overlook literary critic M.K. Sanoo and ghazal singer Umbayi while proposing an institution named after K.J. Yesudas. The Mayor said the proposal would be revised as a cultural centre.

BJP councillor Priya Prasanth raised concerns over the use of identified tracts of land, where the Corporation’s welfare projects were already under way, for revenue-generating projects under the UCF. She also pointed to a possible conflict in remodelling the Palluruthy relief settlement, a welfare project, by incorporating commercial facilities. Welfare standing committee chairperson Antony Painuthara said the project would be implemented without affecting the peaceful lives of the settlement’s residents and that the revenue generated would help ensure the settlement’s long-term sustainability.