After witnessing several anomalies, the Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) is all set to file FIR against the beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana (PMAY), who despite receiving first installment are yet to resume the construction work of second phase. Tightening the noose, the civic body personnel have identified more than 1,250 defaulters from 55 wards who regardless of getting four notices are reluctant to initiate the construction task.
Following the recent orders of Deputy Municipal Commissioner, Sanjay Kumar, RMC City Managers have compiled the lists of defaulters ward-wise. According to a City Manager, the corporation has been constantly monitoring the construction work status since past few months. A City Manager associated with PMAY project said that earlier the defaulters were served notice four times to resume the construction work of the second phase but the situation remained the same. The work of second phase was supposed to get complete within six months.
Under PMAY scheme that aims to develop affordable housing for poor, a beneficiary gets Rs. 45,000 after completing the first phase construction task. As per the norms, payment is done in four installments to the beneficiaries. “As soon as the digging work in the first phase gets complete, the beneficiaries receive Rs. 45,000. In most of the cases here, the beneficiaries have received the money but are now making excuses to resume the construction task. In the first phase, 70 beneficiaries have been identified against whom FIR will be registered,” said a city manager, requesting anonymity.
“As per our defaulters list, as many as 1,250 such beneficiaries have been identified who despite reminders are yet to initiate the construction work. Also, ward councilors too have been asked to verify the status of this flagship scheme but no concrete findings as such came to us from their side regarding this,” the City Manager further added.
On enquiring about the status of PMAY scheme in different wards that is lagging behind immensely in comparison to other wards, the City Manager said “Anomalies have been found in almost every ward. However, ward number 2 and 3 registers quite a number of such cases where maximum defaulters have been found infringing the guidelines. We are also planning to release the second list of the defaulters at the earliest.”
Taking the initiative ahead, on January 6, RMC released the list of defaulters against whom action will be taken soon in a day or two. When contacted a few ward councilors to know the status of PMAY scheme at their respective wards, none of them were able to give a valid statement regarding this. In addition, consolidated reports suggest that not merely in Ranchi but in other districts as well, several beneficiaries of PMAY scheme have either migrated to other States or have spend the money after receiving the first installment of the flagship programme leaving the district administration in quandary.