[Urbanstudy] Standing Committee on Urban Development : Rajiv Awas Yojana is a battle and the new mission for urban housing is a war

[Vinay Baindur]

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/housing-for-all-scheme-parliamentary-committee-raps-housing-ministry/article6711238.ece



Housing for all scheme: Panel raps Ministry

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

TOPICS
interior policy <http://www.thehindu.com/tag/interior-policy/1400/>housing
and urban planning
<http://www.thehindu.com/tag/housing-and-urban-planning/1402/>
politics <http://www.thehindu.com/tag/politics/1349/>government
<http://www.thehindu.com/tag/government/1385/>
Rajiv Awas Yojana is a battle and the new mission for urban housing is a
war, says the report

The Centre has assured of Housing for All by 2022 under the Sardar Patel
National Mission for Urban Housing, but reviewing the earlier model of this
flagship programme, then known as the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY), a Standing
Committee on Urban Development in its report has noted that the programme
has failed to take off for lack of proper planning.

In a report submitted to Parliament earlier this week, the Committee has
noted that even after a lapse of three years preparation work in the
targeted 195 cities has not been achieved by the Ministry of Housing and
Urban Poverty Alleviation.

RAY, launched in two phases was set up for a “slum free India” with
inclusive and equitable cities, where citizen have access to basic civic
infrastructure and social amenities and decent shelter. The preparatory
phase was for a period of two years with a target of 195 cities. The
implementation phase was approved in September 2013.

However, the Committee has noted that the preparation activities for phase
I of RAY were “tardy”.

“Till date preparatory activities have been completed only in 50 cities of
15 States and work is in progress in 124 cities and is at various stages of
completion,” the Committee says.

Reviewing the implementation stage, it says till date 228 cities have been
included under RAY and projects have been approved for 145 cities in 22
States. “...The Committee is distressed to note that as on August 1, 2014,
166 detailed project reports have been approved.”

Taking a serious note of the pace of work, the Committee seems sceptical of
the Ministry's explanation that RAY has been discontinued and the
liabilities created by way of approval of projects are proposed to be
subsumed in the new scheme, the Sardar Patel National Mission for Urban
Housing.

“The facts are indicative of the fact that RAY is a battle and the new
mission for Urban Housing is a war. The Committee fails to understand as to
how the war would be won when the battle was lost in the preparatory phase
itself,” the report says.

The Ministry has been advised to “strive vigorously to complete the
preparatory activities at the earliest and carry out effective measures for
monitoring the scheme and sensitise the State governments at the highest
level about the goal of the scheme”.

Keywords: Sardar Patel Urban Housing Mission
<http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/housing-for-all-scheme-parliamentary-committee-raps-housing-ministry/article6711238.ece#>
, urban housing
<http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/housing-for-all-scheme-parliamentary-committee-raps-housing-ministry/article6711238.ece#>
, slum development
<http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/housing-for-all-scheme-parliamentary-committee-raps-housing-ministry/article6711238.ece#>
, Rajiv Awas Yojana
<http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/housing-for-all-scheme-parliamentary-committee-raps-housing-ministry/article6711238.ece#>
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