The Union Urban Development Ministry has decided to merge several important schemes like Rajiv Rinn Yojna, JNNURM, Rajiv Awas Yojna (RAY) under one umbrella to be named as National Housing Mission. This will remove the tag of Nehru-Gandhi family from the existing schemes launched during the Congress-led Governments at the Centre in the past several years.
Union Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu on Friday said the Government has decided to merge all existing housing schemes and launch a national housing scheme.
“The Ministry has conducted an intensive study on the achievements and failures of the existing schemes like JNURM, Indira Awas Yojana and others and has decided to merge all,” he said after inaugurating 12th National Convention on Housing for All-2022 in the national Capital on Friday.
He said the mission would be launched soon and will work on PPP (Public Private Partnership) mode. The Minister also said the Government is committed to bring the housing interest rate down. According to various surveys, over ten thousand crore families are living without proper housing and “that is why Prime Minister Narendra Modi has envisaged housing for all by 2022,” he said while adding that new subsidy programme for affordable housing would be announced soon.
According to a report, from 2005 to June 2014, only 8.15 lakh out of the total 14.42 lakh sanctioned houses could be constructed in the housing schemes under JnNURM, which was meant for urban slum dwellers. Moreover, construction is under progress in 3.83 lakh houses and no work has been initiated in nearly two lakh units across States.
Similarly, RRY is one of the UPA’s major schemes that the Modi Government has decided to do away or tweak them with better features to attract maximum beneficiaries.