Urban plan: States bite reforms bait

With as many as 12 state governments biting the bait of the Centre8217;s urban reform plan, the Vajpayee government8217;s attempt to give the housing sector a much-needed boost is bearing fruit.

Even Urban Development Minister Bandaru Dattatreya8217;s home state, Andhra Pradesh, which had refused to sign the MoU with the Centre, has given in to the pressure.

8216;8216;Apart from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, which are nowhere in the picture, most of the states have either signed the MoU or have shown interest in signing it by end of the month,8217;8217; Dattatreya said.

The Centre has packaged the reform plan so craftily that the states are finding it rather difficult not to fall for it. Devised as an Urban Reform Incentive fund with Rs 500-crore additional budget, the states are ranked on the basis of reforms they are ready to implement 8212; ranging from reducing stamp duties to repealing the Urban Land Ceiling Act.