Ranchi, Sep 29 (PTI) Karmela Linda will no longer have to suffer from a leaking roof of her mud house in the rainy season, as construction of her pucca house under a state-sponsored housing scheme has begun.
She said they face many difficulties during the monsoons as they live in a thatched-roofed mud house.
Linda is a beneficiary of the Jharkhand government’s ambitious housing project – ‘Abua Awas Yojana’ – in Ranchi’s Kanke block.
“Water leaks from one portion of the roof and drips from another portion during rain. I am happy now as the construction of my house under Abua Awas scheme has started,” she said.
Linda is not alone but thousands of beneficiaries under the scheme received their first instalment for the construction of the house and their dream for a pucca house would soon turn into reality.
The beneficiaries who endure the instability of mud houses vulnerable to collapse during heavy rain now see this initiative as a pathway to a more secure future, not just for themselves, but for future generations.
The Jharkhand government aims to provide houses to the poor and homeless in the next five years.
The scheme, launched on November 15, 2023, aims to provide houses to those deprived of the benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.
“We had repeatedly urged the Centre to provide an additional eight lakh houses to the poor of the state. But, they were not given. Then, we decided to build houses for the poor from the state exchequer,” Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren said at a government function on Saturday.
The CM said that the houses built by the state would be three-room with other facilities, better than the Centre-sponsored houses.
The scheme is stated to be a first-of-its-kind initiative after the formation of Jharkhand in 2000.
The government generated applications for the houses during its outreach program – ‘Apki Yojana, Apki Sarkar, Apke Dwar’ (your scheme, your government at your doorstep) – launched last year.
More than 30 lakh applications were generated for the scheme. Of the total, 20 lakh were estimated to be genuine beneficiaries. The government has decided to provide houses to all in a phased manner.
Under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, a beneficiary gets Rs 1.20 lakh for the dwelling units, while the Jharkhand government offers Rs 2 lakh for constructing a three-room house, an official said.
Kushila Tirkey, another beneficiary from Ranchi’s Kanke block, said, “I would like to thank our Chief Minister Hemant Soren for such an initiative and for transforming our lives.” PTI SAN SBN SBN
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