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Urban Challenge Fund: Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai asks cities to prepare bankable projects

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Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai opened the first regional workshop on the Urban Challenge Fund (UCF) and Urban Investment Window (UiWIN) in Nava Raipur on 21 October 2026, and urged cities to prepare high-quality, financially viable projects, PIB Raipur said.

Urban Challenge Fund: Participants at the first regional workshop on the Urban Challenge Fund in Nava Raipur
Participants at the first regional workshop on the Urban Challenge Fund in Nava Raipur Photo: PIB (Government of India, free to use with credit).

HUDCO workshop and two MoUs

The workshop was organised jointly by the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) and the state’s Department of Urban Administration and Development at Mayfair Lake Resort. Two memoranda of understanding were signed: one between HUDCO and the department, and another between the department and CEPT University. Sai said the agreements would help urban local bodies with project planning, access to finance, technical help, training and institutional capacity. He said closer coordination between departments, financial institutions and specialist bodies was essential to prepare cities for the future. The MoUs are also meant to help with financial resource mobilisation and technical expertise for city projects, PIB said.

Key Facts

  • Event: first regional workshop on UCF and UiWIN
  • Date: 21 October 2026, Nava Raipur
  • Organisers: HUDCO and Chhattisgarh urban administration department
  • MoUs: HUDCO-department and department-CEPT University
  • Fund size cited: Rs 1 lakh crore (Arun Sao)

“The key challenge is to prepare high-quality, viable projects that can attract maximum resources.”

— Arun Sao, Deputy Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh (as reported by PIB)

What Vishnu Deo Sai asked urban local bodies to do

Calling cities centres of economic activity, trade, jobs and innovation, Sai said development plans must account for the needs of the coming decades. He listed drinking water, drainage, roads, electricity, sanitation and public transport as areas needing integrated planning, called for lasting solutions to monsoon waterlogging, and said unorganised overhead cables should be moved underground wherever feasible. He told mayors and civic body heads to study the fund’s provisions carefully, consult experts and prepare projects that are technically sound and economically viable. He linked the effort to the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision and the state’s own Viksit Chhattisgarh vision document, and also cited PM-JANMAN, the Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan and new rail links towards Rowghat and between Raipur and Kurud. He said Chhattisgarh’s natural resources, mineral wealth, fertile land and hardworking people are among its greatest strengths.

An MoU is exchanged on stage at the Nava Raipur workshop
An MoU is exchanged on stage at the Nava Raipur workshop Photo: PIB (Government of India, free to use with credit).

Arun Sao: Rs 1 lakh crore Urban Challenge Fund is a big opportunity

Deputy Chief Minister and Urban Administration Minister Arun Sao said the Government of India has provided for an Urban Challenge Fund of Rs 1 lakh crore, which he called a major opportunity for Chhattisgarh’s cities. The main challenge for urban local bodies is to prepare high-quality, viable projects that can attract the most resources under the initiative, he said. Sai expressed confidence that the technical guidance from the workshop would give fresh direction to urban development in the state, and said gains against Left-Wing Extremism had improved prospects for investment. Mayors, municipal council and nagar panchayat presidents and officials attended. Sai said elected representatives have a big responsibility to understand the real needs of their cities and find lasting solutions to local problems.

Why It Matters: Money from the Urban Challenge Fund depends on cities bringing well-prepared projects, so workshops like this decide how much smaller states and towns can actually draw from it.

Also on TrendDesh: Rowghat gets its first train since Independence as Raipur passenger service is flagged off · CSR governance training in Shillong urges companies to back Meghalaya skills and livelihoods

Source: PIB Raipur, 21 Oct 2026 · HUDCO · Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

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