Union Cabinet allocates Rs 5,142 Cr to develop 300 Smart Villages

The Union Cabinet has allocated Rs 5,142 crore to develop 300 rural clusters by 2019-20 across the country under Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission with an outlay of Rs 5142.08 crore.

The rural clusters will be known as ‘Smart Villages’. This is yet another ambitious project of the Modi Government after ‘Smart City’ project. The project is aimed to boost the economic, social and infrastructure development in rural areas.

The new project will replace UPA government’s PURA (Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural Areas) initiative, which reportedly “failed” because only voluntary organizations were involved.