Maha govt to build 1.86 lakh houses for backward class

Nagpur, July 26: Under the central government's Indira Aawas Yojana, the Maharashtra Government will construct 1.86 lakh houses for the backward class people in the state.

The scheme, which was introduced in 2009-10, plans to provide a total number of 10 lakh houses for the poor and below poverty line (BPL) in the state. However, only those, who have registered their names by the year 2008, are entitled to get the houses.

According to officials, the Social Justice Department has so far received about 3.50 lakh applications, including about one lakh in the scheduled castes category alone. About 60 per cent of houses are reserved for scheduled caste, while 15 per cent for minorities and other communities.

"As per the norms, people who have a plot of land are eligible to get a house. Under this scheme, houses are built both within the municipal limits and outside them. There are fixed quotas for the houses," Maharashtra Minister for Social Justice, Shivajirao Moghe told PTI.

"The Gharkul Yojana has received tremendous response in nine districts of Maharashtra, mostly from Konkan and western Maharashtra. Priority would be given to the people from the below poverty line (BPL) and those who are just above poverty line (APL)," Moghe said. He added that Zilla Parishads are also involved in the scheme.

Divisional Social Welfare officer Sanjiv Gade said, "There is a scarcity of landowners for the construction of houses. The design the houses under the scheme is provided by the Government of India. There are no irregularities, no middlemen involved and no political pressure from any quarter."

He said that 1,363 housing units are ready and a target of 4,965 houses for the year 2010-11.

PTI