DNA Special: Modi govt’s housing scheme Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana hit by corruption in Rajasthan?

‘Roti, Kapda aur Makaan’, which is a popular phrase in India, is essential for survival but those below the poverty line have little to no access to all three of these commodities. Every poor person in India spends his entire life fulfilling the dream of these three things. To fulfill this dream of the poor, the central government launched The Prime Minister's Housing Scheme, running it with the aim of giving a roof to the poor. But the PM Awas Yojana, which is one of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's dream projects, has also been hit by corruption.

The hub of the corruption in PM Awas Yojana is now Rajasthan, according to multiple reports. Rajasthan government has secured first place in the category of the state that has completed the highest number of houses under the Prime Minister's Housing Scheme. However, this success is not the whole truth of the scheme.

Zee News has done ground reporting from the Dholpur district of Rajasthan to investigate the claims and complaints of corruption in PM Awas Yojana in Rajasthan. According to the government data, till the year 2021-22, funds have been sanctioned to 16,91,639 houses under the PM Awas Yojana in Rajasthan. Of these, 13,18,902 houses have been fully built, and 3,56,719 houses have been completed almost 90 percent.

These figures are from the Panchayati Raj Department of the Government of Rajasthan on whose strength the Gehlot government is patting its back that it has built the maximum number of houses under the PM Housing Scheme. 

Most of the people contacted by Zee News, living in rural areas, said that after two installments of the loan, no money was given to them by the state government.

A strange story related to the Prime Minister's Housing Scheme came to light in Lohagal village adjacent to Ajmer city, where people were told that no matter what they do, the houses will remain unfinished and no installment will come now, the whole matter is stuck after two installments.

After probing the matter further at the Gram Panchayat office, it was revealed that hundreds of names were removed from the PM Awas Yojana list prepared by the state government. These names included those who needed genuine help, and their houses were on the verge of collapsing.

The money came from PM Awas Yojana – the central government – but never reached those in genuine need. Instead, the funds were allotted to several shopkeepers to build their additional income, and even those who had steady houses but wanted another property in their name.

By looking at the ground reality of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana in Rajasthan, you must have understood who the real beneficiaries of this scheme are. After Zee News investigations, it was revealed that a bribe of Rs 30,000 is required for the third installment of the scheme, and Rs 5,000 to Rs 11,000 for the lease of the land.