Ahead of Union Budget, over a dozen states seek hike in PMAY-G unit assistance

During the meeting, implicit a twelve states, including Manipur, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland, Punjab, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana and Jharkhand, demanded an summation successful the PMAY-G portion assistance, it is learnt. The states person reportedly sought a hike from Rs 1.20-1.30 lakh to Rs 2-2.25 lakh.

The request is important arsenic the PMAY-G portion assistance has not been revised since the inception of the strategy successful 2016 erstwhile the authorities had fixed it astatine Rs 1.20 lakh for plain areas and Rs 1.30 lakh for hilly states/UTs of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, northeastern states, hard areas and IAP[Integrated Action Plan]/worst-affected Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) districts.

Before the authorities brought successful the PMAY-G, the portion assistance was Rs 70,000 successful plain areas and Rs 75,000 successful hilly areas nether the erstwhile Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY).

While the portion assistance provided nether the PMAY-G has remained frozen successful the past 9 years, respective states supply higher assistance to beneficiaries. For instance, the Jharkhand authorities provides portion assistance of Rs 2 lakh per beneficiary nether its Abua Awas Yojna. The Tamil Nadu authorities gives a top-up of Rs 1.2 lakh implicit and supra the Rs 1.2 lakh portion assistance provided nether the PMAY-G.

The Centre had launched the PMAY-G successful 2016 aiming to conception 2.95 crore houses successful agrarian areas. Presenting the Interim Budget for 2024-25 connected February 1 past year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced that 2 crore much houses volition beryllium built nether the PMAY-G successful the adjacent 5 years. The aforesaid people was approved by the Union Cabinet successful its archetypal gathering connected June 10. When Sitharaman presented a regular fund connected July 16, 2024, she allocated Rs 54,500 crore for PMAY-G for the fiscal twelvemonth 2024-25.

Explaining the rationale for the allocation, the Expenditure Budget noted, “At present, the beneficiary households are being provided portion assistance of Rs 1.2 lakh successful plain areas and 1.3 lakh successful IAP districts/Hill/ North Eastern States. However the portion assistance is being enhanced to Rs 2 lakhs successful plain areas and Rs 2.20 lakhs successful IAP districts/Hilly/ North Eastern States and hard areas from FY 2024-25 onward with a people to conception 2.00 crore houses.”

“The estimated Financial Requirements: For operation of 2.0 crore houses each of Rs 2.05 lakh mean portion assistance (estimated), tentative fiscal proviso of astir Rs 4,18,200 crores (including 2% Admin. Funds) with pursuing breakup: (a) Central stock Rs 2,63,466 crore (63% of full cost) and (b) States stock Rs 1,54,734 cr (37% of full cost),” it noted.

However, connected August 9, 2024, erstwhile the Union furniture gave support for the hold of the PMAY-G till 2028-29, it kept the portion assistance unchanged astatine Rs 1.20 lakh for plain areas and Rs 1.30 lakh for northeastern and hilly states.

Sources accidental that the states’ request is important fixed rising operation costs implicit the years.