Authorities of the Tripura Rural Economic Growth and Service Delivery Project (TRESP) are working diligently to ensure the completion of the initiative by 2029. The World Bank-aided multi-sectoral program aims to improve infrastructure and services in rural areas, with a particular focus on constructing over 416 km of all-season roads.
Chief Operating Officer (COO) of TRESP, Gajendra Verma, provided an update on the progress of the project on August 10. He stated that out of the total road construction target, 71.49 km has been completed, with work ongoing on an additional 133.41 km. Work orders have also been issued for another 133.41 km of roads.
A significant portion of the project’s budget, over Rs 500 crore out of Rs 1,400 crore, has been allocated for strengthening the foundation of roads to support economic growth in rural areas, particularly in tribal regions. Verma highlighted that 23 rural development blocks, including 11 ‘aspirational blocks’, will benefit from the project. Additionally, 12 school buildings are set to be constructed to invest in human capital development services.
Verma emphasized that Detailed Project Reports have been prepared for the school building construction, with work already underway on four buildings. These schools will be located in tribal-dominated areas to benefit students from indigenous tribes. The project also includes plans to provide training for teachers to enhance their skills.
Under TRESP, producer groups (PGs) will be formed under the Tripura Rural Livelihood Management (TRLM) to promote institution building. Verma noted that 2,000 PGs have already been established out of a target of 2,500. The project will also focus on developing single-window services, both through apps and web-based platforms, to facilitate easy access to state government schemes.
Verma mentioned that a firm has been engaged to study and recommend IT solutions, including government process re-engineering (GPR), for a total of 144 services and schemes. Additionally, the Tripura Space Application Centre (TSAC) will collaborate with a company to integrate a dashboard system for mobile data collection, preparation, dissemination, and visualization.
The World Bank is providing approximately Rs 1,120 crore for the TRESP, which was launched in March of the previous year. The project aims to bring about significant improvements in rural infrastructure and service delivery, ultimately benefiting communities in Tripura.
