Provisions finalized, final approval soon
Retrieved land may also be utilized
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Apr 17: The Union Territory Government is almost ready with Land Allotment Policy to the poor people for construction of houses under Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana for the landless people as there was no provision hitherto to allot land to the people and houses were being constructed only for those people who had land on their names.
Few days back, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha had made an important announcement in this regard saying there was no law in Jammu and Kashmir to allot land to the people who don’t possess it for construction of their houses under the Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana and that the Government will shortly come out with law so that landless people get houses under the PMAY.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the administration is now ready with the laws for allotment of Government land to the landless people to facilitate construction of houses under the Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana in both urban as well as rural areas.
“The laws are likely to be approved by the Administrative Council headed by the Lieutenant Governor shortly after which the Land Allotment Policy will come into force,” they said.
As per the sources, the Government could utilize some of the land recovered during anti-encroachment drive in January-February this year for allotment to landless people specifically for the purpose of construction of houses where the land is fit for residential purposes. In other cases, the land will be allotted in other areas where State land is available and houses can be constructed.
During anti-encroachment drive, the Lieutenant Governor had stated that encroached land retrieved from the people will be utilized for construction of schools, hospitals and other such places of public purposes.
During current financial year of 2023-24, Jammu and Kashmir has been allotted 40,000 new houses for houseless families under Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana-G, 18934 dwelling units were completed under PMAY-U while 87,350 IHHLs and 2500 CSCs are to be constructed.
“The problem in Jammu and Kashmir was that some poor people who deserved houses under Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana didn’t have land on their names. Therefore, houses couldn’t be constructed for them. Further, there was no law for allotment of land to landless people for construction of houses unlike other States and Union Territories which have provision to give land to the people for raising the houses sanctioned under PMAY,” sources said.
In view of this, they added, the Jammu and Kashmir Government had to come out with provision to allot land to the landless people before they could be sanctioned house for construction under the PMAY.
“I don’t have to contest elections here nor I have to do politics but no laws were made to give land to the poor. And when they don’t have the land how they will construct houses whether it is Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana (PMAY) or any other scheme. Now, we are going to make the law shortly. This will ensure that the poor people who don’t have land will get land and houses also,” the Lieutenant Governor had said in a function here last month.
Describing the decision as “historic”, sources said this will go a long way in helping the landless people to avail benefits under the Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana.
Sources said a number of houses under the PMAY are likely to be completed by the end of current financial year in March next.
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