The Fact News Service
Chandigarh, May 25
Haryana Urban Local Bodies Minister, Kamal Gupta said that the merger of the Housing Board Haryana (HBH) with the Haryana Sahri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) is set to be finalized within the next 45 days. This was disclosed during a meeting chaired by Mr. Kamal Gupta to review the progress of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana- Urban (PMAY-U). The meeting was attended by Mr. Raja Sekhar Vundru, Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) of the Housing for All Department, Mr. Manav Malik, Secretary of Housing Board and other senior officers of the Department.
During the meeting, it was informed that a committee, headed by the Administrator (HQ), HSVP, Panchkula, has already been formed to oversee the merger process of HBH and HSVP. In addition, the department has drafted a comprehensive housing policy called Mukhya Mantri Awas Yojana to cater to economically weaker section (EWS) families. The policy aims to provide affordable housing to needy families with an annual income of up to INR 1.80 lakh, as verified in the Parivar Pehchan Patra (PPP).
Recently, the Chief Minister Mr. Manohar Lal approved two pilot projects to be initiated under the Mukhya Mantri Awas Yojana. The first project entails constructing multi-storey dwelling units in Panchkula, which will be provided to beneficiaries at a subsidized rate. The second project aims to plan and allocate one marla or 1.5 marla plots in Yamunanagar, on the land owned by HSVP and HBH, to deserving households, along with financial assistance for house construction. Additionally, there are plans to construct multi-storey housing in Gurugram (Hyper zone) and multi-storey housing (G+3) in Faridabad, Panchkula, and Sonipat towns.
The meeting also highlighted the progress made in the construction of houses under the Beneficiary Led Construction (BLC) component of PMAY-U, with approximately 14,415 houses completed thus far. Out of the central government’s target of 67,649 beneficiaries for the BLC component, data for 64,823 beneficiaries has been registered in the Housing for All (Urban) Management Information System (MIS). Geo-tagging of 64,784 houses has been undertaken to monitor construction progress, while supervisors have approved 4,439 houses.
To support the construction of houses, the state government is providing financial assistance of up to INR 1.00 lakh, in addition to the existing Central assistance of INR 1.50 lakh, for all eligible beneficiaries. Furthermore, a one-time exemption has been granted for the payment of development charges, building plan scrutiny fees, and offline approval of building plans/maps for beneficiaries under the Beneficiary-Led Construction (BLC) and Credit Link Subsidy Scheme (CLSS) in Haryana. This exemption aims to reduce the financial burden and streamline the approval process for these beneficiaries.
Under the Beneficiary-Led Construction (BLC) scheme, the first installment of financial assistance will be released immediately after the issuance of the Letter of Intent (LOI). Similarly, the second installment will be provided once the construction progresses up to the lintel level but before the roof is laid. This approach ensures that beneficiaries receive timely financial support at critical stages of the construction process.
