KARAIKAL: The Centrally-sponsored PURA Scheme (Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural Areas), brainchild of formerPresident Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, was launched for the first time in the UT, here on Monday.Union Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) will be implementing the scheme with the support from the Department of Economic Affairs and the technical assistance of Asian Development Bank under a public-private partnership (PPP).MARG Karaikal Port bagged the PURA pilot project through a competitive bidding.GRK Reddy, chairman and managing director, MARG Group said that under the pilot project, MARG had been mandated to developmulti-dimensional projects and social inclusion programmes which would generatelivelihood opportunities and provide basic amenities across eight village panchayats in Karaikal district at a cost of ` 93 crore. “This is a unique initiative where PPP is integrated with corporate social business. Capacity building and efficiency of the private sector is complemented by strategic and visionary support by theGovernment,” he said.The benefits that will come for Karaikal district will be in the form of skill development for over 4,000 individuals and initiatives aimed at doubling the per capita income. Further MARG would be focusing on the developement of amenities suggested by MoRD said Reddy. To implement the pilot project, MARG has partnered with National Agro Foundation (NAF). Other NGOs like Wockhardt Foundation and Exnora are also likely to assist MARG in this initiative. The CMD said, ‘Family income in all target areas is expected to go up from the present `1,36,000 each per annum to `4,50,000 per annum over the next decade.
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