Reforms in urban land to ensure housing for poor : Minister

New Delhi, May 3 (UNI) The Government today said the idea behind bringing in reforms in the urban land ceiling act was to allow flexibility in reaching housing to the urban poor.

Answering a question regarding the projects in Urban Centres, Minister of State for Urban Development Kumari Selja said the demand for housing in the country was 24 million units for economically weaker sections and low income groups and the states were asked to bring in reforms in their territories for availing funds under Jawarharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission slated to be taken up in 63 major cities and towns of the country.

She said some states had signed it and some had reservations but there was enough flexibility to allow the states to have their own solution to overcome the housing problems of the urban poor during the 11th plan. She made it clear that there was no instruction to make the slum dwellers pay for water and sanitation in the name of reforms.

The Minister was in the dock when former minister Yashwant Sinha took a strong exception to the removal of Ambedkar's name from the urban renewal mission which was operationalised under the names of Valmiki and Babasaheb Ambedkar.

There was no direct reply from the minister except for her explanation that the VAMBAY scheme suffered some inadequacies and hence had to be replaced. There was verbal clash between Mr Sinha and a member of ruling party when he attempted to defend the naming of the scheme after Nehru.

UNI