Govt to provide houses to slum dwellers in five years

Outlining the UPA government's objective to make the country slum-free as early as possible, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said his dispensation will provide houses to slum dwellers in the next five years.

Christened 'Rajiv Awas Yojna', the scheme will provide better housing facilities to slum dwellers within next five years. "Today, lakhs of our citizens live in slums which lack basic amenities. We wish to make our country slum free as early as possible," Singh said.

"In the next five years, we will provide better housing facilities to slum dwellers through a new scheme, Rajiv Awas Yojana," he said in his Independence Day speech. He said the Jawaharalal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission will accelerate the programme.
The Rajiv Awas Yojana will extend support to states that are willing to assign property rights to people living in slum areas for provision of shelter and basic infrastructure and civic amenities in slums.

Consultations on concept note have been held with a wide range of stakeholders in which the Government of Andhra Pradesh was also included. A token allocation of Rs 150 crores has been made in the current year's plan allocation.