GS Paper II
News Excerpt:
Chairing the maiden Cabinet meeting of his third term. The Prime Minister approved government assistance for the construction of three crore rural and urban houses under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).
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Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)
- The PMAY is a centrally sponsored scheme both the Union and the State governments are supposed to financially contribute to it.
- The declared objectives of the scheme included
- Rehabilitation of slum dwellers with private developers’ participation;
- Promotion of affordable housing for the weaker sections through Credit Linked Subsidy Schemes (CLSS);
- Affordable housing in partnership with public and private sectors;
- Subsidy for Beneficiary-led Construction (BLC)
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Cabinet Decision on PMAY Expansion:
- The Cabinet has decided to provide assistance for the construction of 3 crore additional rural and urban households under PMAY.
- Out of the 3 crore houses, 2 crore will be constructed under PMAY-Gramin, while 1 crore under PMAY-Urban.
- The decision reflects the government's commitment to promoting dignified life and ease of living for crores of countrymen.
- The government's decision to expand the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana by building 3 crore new houses in villages and cities demonstrates our commitment to improving living standards for the people.
- The expansion of PMAY also highlights the government's determination for development of all and social justice (Sabka Vikas aur Samaj Kalyan).
Increased Assistance under PMAY-G:
- Under PMAY-G, each beneficiary gets funds up to Rs 1.2 lakh in the plains and Rs 1.3 lakh in hilly states, difficult areas, and tribal and backward districts under the Integrated Action Plan (IAP).
- The Centre has decided to increase the assistance provided to the beneficiaries under PMAY-G by about 50 per cent.
- The cost of construction of the PMAY-G house has been increased from the existing Rs 1.2 lakh to Rs 1.8 lakh in the plains and Rs 1.3 lakh to Rs 2 lakh in the hilly areas.
- These additional 2 crore PMAY-G houses will be over and above the 2.95 crore houses sanctioned under the rural scheme since its inception in 2016.
Cost-Sharing and Budgetary Provision:
- The Centre and states share expenses in a 60:40 ratio in case of plain areas, and in a 90:10 ratio for northeastern states, two Himalayan states, and the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.
- The Centre bears 100 per cent cost in case of other Union Territories, including the UT of Ladakh.
- In the 2024-25 Interim Budget, the Finance Minister announced the construction of 2 crore more houses under PMAY-G over the next five years.
- Despite Covid-19 challenges, the government is nearing its target of 3 crore houses. Sitharaman emphasized that these additional houses will address the growing number of families.
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Evaluation of Implementation of PMAY-U
- Gap in housing demand assessment: The initial housing shortage estimate of two crore houses was higher than the actual demand of 1.23 crore houses under PMAY-U, as it is a demand-driven scheme.(As of march 2023)
- Lack of basic amenities: As of December 2022, 5.6 lakh houses were not delivered to beneficiaries due to the lack of basic services like water, sanitation, and electricity.
- Timeline for grounding and completion: While 87% of the sanctioned houses have been grounded, only 61 lakh houses have been delivered to beneficiaries. The Committee recommended strict timelines to achieve the target by December 31, 2024.
- High-cost burden on beneficiaries: The beneficiary contribution is about 60% on average, making houses unaffordable for some. The Committee suggested varying central assistance based on states' topography if a second phase is launched.
- Emphasis on BLC vertical: Around 60% of houses were sanctioned under the Beneficiary Led Construction (BLC) vertical, despite many urban homeless being landless, diluting the scheme's objective.
- Low sanctioning under ISSR vertical: Despite being an important vertical for landless people, only 4.33 lakh houses were sanctioned against a demand of 14.35 lakh under the In-Situ Slum Redevelopment (ISSR) vertical.
Key Points on Evaluation of PMAY-G
- Implementation Timeline: Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G) was launched on 1st April 2016 with a target to construct 2.95 crore pucca houses by March 2022. This deadline has been extended to March 2024 due to various delays.
- Impact of Covid-19: The nationwide lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic significantly slowed down construction activities under PMAY-G.
- Causes of Delay:
- Delay in release of Central and State funds from State Treasury to State Nodal Account of PMAY-G.
- Beneficiary unwillingness, migration, and disputed succession cases.
- Delays in land allotment to landless beneficiaries by States/UTs.
- General/Assembly/Panchayat elections and unavailability of building materials.
- Progress:
- Out of the mandated target of 2.95 crore houses, 2.94 crore have been allocated to States/UTs.
- 2.85 crore houses have been sanctioned, and 2.22 crore houses have been completed as of 24.03.2023.
- Beneficiary Identification:
- Beneficiaries are identified based on housing deprivation parameters and exclusion criteria from the Socio Economic Caste Census (SECC) 2011.
- An auto-generated priority list from SECC 2011 was verified by Gram Sabhas and an appellate process.
- The SECC 2011 database provided approximately 2.08 crore eligible beneficiaries.
- The Awaas+ survey was conducted to identify additional beneficiaries not included in the 2011 SECC, adding an estimated 87 lakh houses to the target list.
- Current Status: The combined data from SECC 2011 and Awaas+ is being used to meet the overall target of 2.95 crore houses.
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Implementation Approach of PMAY-U:
- PMAY-U adopts a demand-driven approach where States/UTs are empowered to approve projects for all eligible beneficiaries identified through a demand survey. The criteria for eligibility are:
- Beneficiaries must not own a pucca house in their name or any family member’s name anywhere in India.
- Beneficiaries must belong to the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) with an annual household income of up to ₹3 lakh.
- Beneficiaries must own land to avail of benefits under the Beneficiary Led Construction (BLC) component.
Central Assistance Details
- The Government of India provides fixed shares of Central Assistance based on the following:
- ₹1.0 lakh per house under the In-Situ Slum Redevelopment (ISSR) component.
- ₹1.5 lakh per house under the Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP) and Beneficiary Led Individual Construction or Enhancement (BLC) verticals.
- Under the Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme (CLSS) vertical, an interest subsidy at the rate of 6.5%, amounting to up to ₹2.67 lakh per house, is provided for beneficiaries of the EWS and Lower Income Group (LIG) categories.
Cost Sharing
- The remaining cost of the house, as specified in Detailed Project Reports (DPRs), is shared among:
- States/UTs
- Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)
- Beneficiaries
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