Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) technical experts and World Bank officials will travel to the Netherlands and Spain for a study tour of river front development projects.
SMC is moving ahead with Tapi river front development project worth Rs 3,900 crores. The first phase of the project will be of Rs 1,990 crores.
The World Bank will fund 70 percent of the project in the first phase while the remaining amount will be borne equally by SMC and state government, said Surat municipal corporation engineer A.M Dubey.
According to SMC sources, the World Bank will cover the entire cost of SMC officials’ study tour.
Sources said that officials going on this tour includes SMC Commissioner B N Pani, City Engineer A M Dubey, town planning department officer Manish Docter, Deputy commissioner finance Kamlesh Naik.
City engineer A M Dubey said, “Once we get approval from the standing committee we will seek permission from the state government and central government for this study tour. The study tour will help us to plan and work as per the projects done in both the places.”
“All aspects like recreational areas, pollution, resilience, public ecology, social life will also be looked at. We will get new ideas which if found feasible will be implemented in the Tapi river front projects,” he added.