1 lakh Indiramma houses will be ready by month-end: Ponguleti

Hyderabad: Housing Minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy has said that the Indiramma Indlu housing scheme being implemented by the State government will become a benchmark welfare programme in the country.

He announced that housewarming ceremonies will be conducted for one lakh houses by the end of this month.

The Minister said that so far about 3.60 lakh houses have been sanctioned in rural areas under the Indiramma Indlu scheme. Suitable dates for the housewarming ceremonies will be announced soon, he added.

Ponguleti held a video conference with district Housing Project Directors from the Secretariat on Saturday to review the implementation of the programme as part of the 99-day Public Administration–Progress Report action plan. He directed officials to give top priority to the housing scheme and ensure its effective implementation.

The Minister noted that nearly 20 per cent of the houses sanctioned across the State have not yet been grounded and instructed officials to take steps on a war footing to ensure that all houses are grounded by March 31 with the consent of beneficiaries and in consultation with local public representatives and Indiramma committees.

He also asked officials to closely monitor houses that are nearing completion and ensure that they are finished by the end of June. The Minister suggested that the first phase of Indiramma houses should be completed before the second phase of houses is sanctioned in April.

To reduce the financial burden on beneficiaries, he directed district-level price control committees to monitor the prices of construction materials and take necessary steps if costs increase. He also suggested encouraging self-help group (SHG) women to establish brick manufacturing units locally to improve supply and control prices.

The government is already providing free sand for the construction of Indiramma houses, he said, adding that officials should ensure that beneficiaries do not face any difficulties in accessing it.

The Minister expressed concern that in some places payments had been halted after releasing one or two installments. He directed officials to immediately clear pending payments and warned of strict action against those responsible for delays.

He also instructed officials to complete the identification of beneficiaries for under-construction double-bedroom houses by March 31, giving priority to poor families without house sites.

Housing Secretary V.P. Gautam and other officials participated in the review meeting.