Parliamentary panel asks Center to increase financial assistance for PMAY-Gramin, Real Estate News, ET Real Estate

A parliamentary panel has asked the government to increase the financial assistance given under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Rural) To help the beneficiaries in completing the houses under the flagship scheme and improving the monitoring of the houses.

30-member committee on estimates, headed by BJP MP Girish Bhalchandra BapatAsked the Ministry of Rural Development to revise the financial assistance provided to help the beneficiaries in timely completion of the sanctioned houses.

At present, the per household unit assistance is Rs 1.20 lakh in plain areas and Rs 1.30 lakh in hilly areas.

“The committee observed that due to increase in the cost of various construction materials and labor charges, the beneficiaries are finding it difficult to complete the construction of houses with the funds at their disposal,” said the report tabled in the Lok Sabha on Thursday.

It said that the loan limit of ₹70,000, which a homeless person can avail, seems “too low” and suggested that given the rising prices of construction materials, the ministry could increase the aid.

The government had set a target of completing 29.5 million houses between 2016-17 and 2021-22. Now, the duration of the mission has been extended till March 2024. The committee asked the ministry to prepare a proposal using the “indexed cost of construction” as a baseline so that funds can be sanctioned that would benefit the intended beneficiaries.

The committee also recommended that a better monitoring mechanism should be set up to improve the quality of construction of houses as these would be used for a longer period of time. “During examination of the subject, the committee was informed that the officers at the block level and district level have to inspect only 10% and 2% houses respectively at each stage of construction,” the report said.

It said the housing scheme should have a monitoring mechanism similar to the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) where the stages of construction are monitored. Rejecting the ministry’s submissions on monitoring the quality of construction through geo-tagged photographs, the report said, “The committee strongly believes that PMAY-G To be long-lasting and usable, the quality of houses should be assessed at various stages of construction.”