By Neeraj Kumar
Patna: Bihar Rural Development Department is fully committed to delivering housing for the poor through the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), with work progressing swiftly in collaboration with the Central Government to meet the scheme’s targets. Bihar’s Rural Development Minister, Shravan Kumar, stated that from 2015 to 2024, the state received a target of 3.7 million houses under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Awas Yojana (PMAY-G), of which 3.66 million homes have already been handed over to beneficiaries.
For the financial year 2024-25, the Bihar government aims to provide 571,975 homes to poor families, with 243,845 houses under PMAY-G and 328,130 houses under the Pradhan Mantri Urban Awas Yojana (PMAY-U).
Minister Shravan Kumar revealed that under the PMAY-G target, the state government has approved the construction of 121,000 houses, with 82,000 families already receiving the first instalment of ₹40,000. Prime Minister Narendra Modi disbursed these funds during a programme in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, on 17 September.
He further noted that, in 2019, the Indian government compiled a list of 2.5 million eligible individuals for the PMAY-G, and currently, 1.35 million people are still awaiting housing in Bihar. To address this, the state has requested an additional 600,000 houses from the Central Government. Minister Shravan Kumar has already met with the Union Minister on the matter.
Additionally, the minister highlighted that the Bihar government identified approximately 9.4 million poor families in the recent caste census and has urged the Central Government to include those left out in the PMAY-G. Positive steps are reportedly being taken by the Centre in this regard.
The Mukhyamantri Gramin Awas Yojana, unique to Bihar, has also been making significant strides, with many states now adopting this model. The scheme provides assistance to individuals who built houses before 1 January 1996 and who have not yet benefited from other government housing schemes.
Under this scheme, the state government grants ₹120,000 for house construction and ₹12,000 for building a toilet. Between 2018 and 2023-24, approval was granted to build houses for 87,000 poor individuals, and 72,000 of these homes have already been completed.
Shravan Kumar also mentioned two other state schemes that support the poor. Under one scheme, the Bihar government provides ₹100,000 to those listed under the PMAY-G but who lack land to build a house. The state also offers ₹50,000 to individuals who received funding to build homes before 1 April 2010 but have yet to complete construction.
The central government contributes 60% of the funds for PMAY-G, while the state covers the remaining 40%. In Bihar’s 11 Naxal-affected districts, families included in the scheme receive ₹125,000, compared to ₹120,000 in normal districts, distributed in three instalments.
The PMAY-U is also active across 149 municipal bodies in Bihar. Under the 2024-25 target, the state has been tasked with constructing 328,130 houses, with the central government contributing ₹150,000 per home and the state providing ₹50,000, totalling ₹200,000 per house.
As of now, 110,456 houses have been built under this target, with the central government expected to provide ₹5,201 crore in the current financial year, of which ₹2,984 crore has already been released.
The minister emphasised that land surveys are conducted before uploading the details on the portal for approval, after which the first instalment of ₹40,000 is disbursed. He acknowledged complaints regarding irregularities in the process and assured that necessary actions are taken to address them.
