Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to release over ₹5,600 crore to 19.40 lakh beneficiaries as the first installment under PM Awas Yojana (Rural) at a function in Jamshedpur on September 15, sources said. He will also interact with some select beneficiaries of the scheme, officials said.
The government has identified as many as 31.73 lakh people to be covered under PMAY-Gramin this fiscal and the release of the first installment may help each beneficiary get about ₹30,000 in his/her bank account, sources said. A government statement, however, said that ₹2,745 crore would be disbursed in the first installment. Griha Pravesh (entry to house) of 26 lakh beneficiaries whose houses have been completed so far during the financial year 2023-24 and 2024-25 will also take place on September 15.
In Punjab, where the PMAY-G beneficiaries to be covered this year are estimated to be close to 64,000 this fiscal, only 5,000 are likely to receive the first installment, which is about 8 per cent. Whereas, all 684 beneficiaries identified in Andhra Pradesh may get the first installment.
In Rajasthan, as many as 1.5 lakh people are estimated to be given the first installment, which is 96 per cent of the total beneficiaries identified this year. But, in Maharashtra, about 2 lakh out of 6.37 lakh beneficiaries are likely to be given the first installment.
In Jharkhand, where the main event will take place, PM Modi may disburse the first installment to 70,000 beneficiaries out of 1.13 lakh people estimated to be covered under PMAY-G.
The Rural Development Ministry has planned to distribute acceptance letters to all the targeted beneficiaries for the financial year 2024-25, an official statement said.
According to Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the PMAY scheme has been expanded and the central government will construct 2 crore additional houses for the poor section in the next 5 years after the success of the scheme and the need for rural houses. He informed the rural development ministers of States on Tuesday that the target was to construct 2.95 crore houses by March 2024 out of which 2.65 crore houses have been completed, though almost all the houses have been approved.
The minister said that the rules of the PMAY scheme have been simplified and amended to ensure people are not excluded. Exclusion criteria such as owning motorised two-wheelers or fishing boats, refrigerators and landline phones have been removed, according to the ministry officials. The monthly income limit of a member of the family has been increased from ₹10,000 to ₹15,000.
“The Ministry of Rural Development, after consulting the views of all the states and all the stakeholders, has decided that unnecessary conditions should be removed so that the objective of housing for all can be truly realized,” the minister said.
The Union cabinet last month approved implementation of the PMAY-G during FY 2024-25 to 2028-29.