Gujarat: Proposal for VMC to bear excess cost of construction of EWS homes sparks row

VMC Congress Corporator Ami Ravat on Friday served a legal notice upon the Standing Committee Chairman, stating that the civic body had “illegally” forced the beneficiaries of the Basic Services to Urban Poor (BSUP), Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY), and Mukhyamantri Gruhawas Yojana (MGY) — all affordable housing schemes of the UPA government until 2014 — to cough up “huge amounts and even take loans” to make payments for cost-escalation due to “delays or corruption of the VMC”.

Seeking approval for the current proposal that benefits “poor people”, Ravat’s letter states, “It is a fact that Beneficiary contribution cannot exceed the provision in Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and we had drawn attention of the Corporation in writing & with representations in General Board meetings when such illegal decision were being taken. Finally the Corporation has realised that the housing schemes are meant for economically weaker sections and that beneficiary contribution cannot exceed the provisions under the scheme and that excess cost should be borne by the VMC…”

Ravat’s legal notice came on a day the Standing Committee met to discuss the proposal put forth before it by the Affordable Housing Department, seeking to bear an “escalation cost” of about Rs 18.25 crore for the construction of 1,067 housing units of the EWS schemes between 2021 and 2023, built as part of the “Housing for All” mission of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. The VMC proposal states that the civic body had already borne the expense of a sum of Rs 13.44 crore in the construction of 2,802 units during 2018 to 2020 instead of “passing on the burden” to the beneficiary.

Ravat said that in past housing schemes of Basic Services to Urban Poor (BSUP), Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY), and Mukhyamantri Gruhawas Yojana (MGY), the VMC had decided to “increase beneficiary contribution to meet with excess costs due to delays in project or corruption”. Stating that the increase of beneficiary contribution, ranging from Rs 90,497 to Rs 2.63 lakh for the BSUP and RAY projects “is criminal and against government policy”, Ravat said, “The beneficiaries in BSUP and RAY schemes are actually slum-dwellers and the houses were to be allocated to them after removal of slums. These are the poorest of poor families, the quality of construction is also questionable. But since the house was demolished the beneficiaries were desperate and left with no option but to bear the cost of excess expenditure than the proposed cost of the house. VMC illegally increased Beneficiary contributions… In fact its blackmailing the homeless poor.”

Ravat has said that just like PMAY, the “poor beneficiaries” of previous housing schemes should be “refunded” and the decision should be taken on “humanitarian grounds”. Ravat said, “I demand that in these schemes, too, the poor beneficiaries should not be punished for corruptions and delays caused by VMC… (excess) beneficiary contribution in the schemes should be refunded to the beneficiaries as many of them have availed loans for making payments. I request you and standing committee members to consider this request on humanitarian grounds, and not force us to legally proceed for recovery of this illegal beneficiary contribution.”

On Friday, Standing Committee Chairman Dr Sheetal Mistry, while briefing mediapersons about the decision taken on the proposals before it, said that the proposal of the affordable housing department had been “deferred” for “further discussion”.