Puducherry has bagged the award for the ‘Best Performing Union Territory in India for Implementing the PMAY’ (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana), an affordable housing scheme run by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
K. Mahesh, Secretary (Housing) received the award at a function in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister for Housing, gave away awards virtually.
The awardees were Parimala G. from Karaikal, Devaki K. in Mahe and Kamma Radha Kumari in Yanam. The beneficiaries received the award in the presence of respective Collectors/Regional Administrator in these enclaves.
This is the second time Puducherry has been selected for excellence in implementation of PMAY.
The award is based on the performance of the Union Territory in a number of parameters such as achieving the demand, number of houses approved, number of houses completed, monthly progress, DBT transfer to the beneficiaries and IEC activities.
According to the Town Planning Department, the PMAY, a centrally sponsored scheme, was launched by the Ministry in 2015 to meet the housing needs of urban poor. The Government of Puducherry was implementing PMAY-U (Urban) scheme in the entire U.T. since 2016.
The Town and Country Planning Department was the State-level nodal agency for implementing the Housing For All Mission by 2022.
The projects related to general and BC category beneficiaries are implemented through the Puducherry Slum Clearance Board and those pertaining to SC/ST category through Adi Dravidar Welfare and Scheduled Tribes Welfare Department.
As of now, 30 projects for construction of 12,912 houses in the Union Territory have been approved by the Ministry under Beneficiary Led Construction (BLC-New). As on November, 2,750 houses have been completed and 3,827 houses were in various stages of construction under BLC component.
Besides, 811 beneficiaries have benefitted under the credit Linked subsidy scheme of PMAY. So far, 331 PMAY beneficiaries have been sanctioned PMAY-Plus toan by the banks in the Union Territory of Puducherry and loan amount disbursed to 277 beneficiaries.