Rs 5.2 crore sanctioned to develop GVMC schools in Vizag

Under the City Investments to Innovate, Integrate, and Sustain (CITIIS) Challenge, a Smart Cities Mission initiative, as many as 44 GVMC schools in Vizag are being given a facelift. Further boosting the cause, the Andhra Pradesh state government, on Tuesday, issued an order allocating additional funds to develop the municipal schools in the city.

The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) was initially granted Rs 64 crore to modernise the educational institutions with state-of-the-art infrastructure. In the latest development, the civic body wrote to the AP state government requesting to sanction an additional fund of Rs 5.2 crore to complete the project. Considering the proposal, Andhra Pradesh Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) Principal Secretary, Y Sri Lakshmi (IAS), released the amount to the municipal corporation of Vizag.

It may be recalled that earlier in 2019, the Central Government had conducted the CITIIS Challenge. The GVMC’s ‘Smart Campus’ proposal made the final cut in the competition. In line with the CITIIS deliverables, the civic body carried out a baseline survey assessment, in the shortlisted 44 government schools, and the required reports were submitted to the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA).

In an earlier conversation with Yo! Vizag, GVMC Educational Officer, Srinivas, informed that AECOM has been appointed as the project management consultant. Sharing further details, he said that in order to submit a Detailed Project Report (DPR), the designs were drafted in an innovative manner. As part of the pilot project, HB Colony Primary School was chosen to be developed as a model school. Municipal schools at Anakapalli, Pudimadaka, Golla Veedhi, and 40 more GVMC schools in Vizag will be revamped at a later stage.