KL NEWS NETWORK
SRINAGAR
Days after failing to make it in Smart City list, Jammu and Kashmir has now figured in the list of over 300 cities and towns prepared by union government for implementing its Housing for All Scheme.
As many as 19 cities/towns in the state have been identified by the Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation ministry for implementation of this scheme that targets to give shelter to millions to homeless people across India by 2022.
The selected cities and towns are in Chhattisgarh (36 cities/towns), Gujarat (30), Jammu and Kashmir (19), Jharkhand (15), Kerala (15), Madhya Pradesh (74), Odisha (42), Rajasthan (40) and Telangana (34).
As per the statement released by the ministry, it will provide assistance of over Rs 200,000 crore over the next six years to enable two crore urban poor get their own houses.
Under the Housing for All initiative, two crore houses are targeted to be built for the poor in urban areas by 2022.
Fifteen states have signed memoranda of agreement (MoA) with the ministry, committing themselves to implement six mandatory reforms essential for making a success of the housing mission in urban areas, the statement said.
By signing the agreement, the states have agreed to make necessary changes including scrapping the requirement of separate non-agricultural permission in case the land falls in residential zone earmarked in the city or town master plan, and preparing or amending master plans earmarking land for affordable housing, the statement said.
The states that have so far agreed to implement the mandatory reforms are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Telangana and Uttarakhand.
