Callous attitude towards housing schemes: Panel

This is reflecting upon callous attitude of Central government towards implementation of various schemes and policies, said the report on demands of grants by the MHUPA.

The report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on urban development,chaired by Sharad Yadav was submitted on Wednesday. The report also criticised the ministry for asking for additional funds even as it failed to utilise budgetary allocations. The report pointed that two of its flagship schemes for providing budget housing in urban areas Affordable Housing for All and Interest Subsidy for Housing for Urban poor have not taken off well.

In case of the former,the panel said that the incentives of Rs 50,000 or 25 per cent of the infrastructure cost to the private developer to build housing for the poor are too meagre to attract them.

In the latter scheme,the Committee recommended that the loan amount should be raised from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh with subsidy of 5 per cent on interest charged on loan depending on the type of the city, the report said. Under the scheme,the government provides 5 per cent interest subsidy on a loan up to Rs 1 lakh for the urban poor.