The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today deferred a decision on the National Urban Renewal Mission by referring it to a Group of Ministers. The GoM will submit a report soon on finetuning the framework of the Mission and extending its tenure from five to seven years.The NURM, sources said, is scheduled to be launched on November 14, to coincide with Jawaharlal Nehru’s birthday.The GoM will be headed by Urban Development Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and will comprise Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar and Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia, sources added.In its present form, the NURM has an outlay of Rs 1,27,000 crore to be disbursed over a ‘‘period of five years’’ to revamp infrastructure in 60 cities across the country, including the seven mega-cities. Sources said the Mission’s term would be extended from five years to seven years as it was felt that the mega-projects to be undertaken via NURM would require a longer timespan.Following today’s Cabinet meeting, Information and Broadcasting Minister Jaipal Reddy said: ‘‘The NURM was discussed, but it needed some finetuning. It will come back to the Cabinet very soon.’’24X7 warning systemNEW DELHI: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Thursday approved an early warning system to help tackle oceanic disasters like last year’s tsunami. ‘‘The Early Warning Centre will be set up at a cost of Rs 125 crore in Hyderabad at the Indian National Ocean Information Services. The centre will work 24 hours, seven days a week, and enable timely dissemination of reliable information,” Finance Minister P Chidambaram said. — ENS
