Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], March 28 (ANI): Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday said that under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana, roads are being extended to small villages of Uttarakhand.

Dhami stated that now with the cluster being made for a standard population, roads will reach even the low population settlements of Uttarakhand and works will be started soon in the fourth phase of the PMGSY scheme.

The work of connecting settlements with a minimum population of 250 in the state with perennial roads has started. The fourth phase guideline has been issued by the Central Government under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana, in which the Uttarakhand Rural Development Department has completed the survey for the construction of 1490 roads of 8750 km length.

The Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana was started by the Central Government in the year 2000 to connect villages to roads.

The first three phases of the scheme have been completed, under which, on the basis of the 2001 census data, villages with a minimum population of 250 have been connected with roads. Now the central government has also issued the fourth phase guideline under the scheme, under which all settlements with a minimum population of 250 are to be connected by road on the basis of the 2011 census data. On the basis of this guideline, the survey of 1490 rural roads, a total of 8750 km long, has been completed in Uttarakhand.

Secretary Rural Development Radhika Jha said that after the survey the work of making DPR for these roads has also been started, which will soon be sent to the central government for final approval. Along with the roads, culverts, causeways and big bridges will also be constructed as per the need.

According to the guideline of the scheme, the population will not be determined on the basis of revenue village or panchayat, but by adding the population living within a certain radius. In Uttarakhand, the population will be determined by adding the settlements present within a radius of one and a half km, whereas in the development blocks adjoining the international border, the population will be determined by adding the settlements present within a radius of 10 km. A state with small population like Uttarakhand will benefit from this. (ANI)