Ensure Land To Landless To Avail Rural Housing Scheme, Odisha CS Asks Departments

Bhubaneswar: In order to achieve its target to provide pucca houses to all poor families in rural areas by 2022, the state government has directed the departments concerned to ensure homestead land to the landless families.

Reviewing the progress of the rural housing scheme at a high-level meeting here on Wednesday, Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy advised the Revenue & Disaster Management, Forest & Environment and Panchyati Raj & Drinking Water departments to come up with proposals for amendments, if necessary, for ensuring pucca houses to all poor families.

After it was revealed at the meeting that many landless families had encroached objectionable land and there was no leasable land at some places, it was decided that the existing norms and regulations need to be modified to provide pucca houses to the landless families in the waiting list of rural housing scheme.

There were around 57,257 families in the waiting list for allotment of houses while 8,069 families have been allotted homestead land, said Director, Special Projects, Rajesh Patil.

It was also revealed at the meeting that 26,18,497 houses have been completed since 2014-15. Out of the government target of construction of 8,06,329 houses in the current year, 3,57,408 are under different stages of completion.

Development Commissioner Suresh Chandra Mohapatra; Additional Chief Secretary, Forest & Environment Dr Mona Sharma; Principal Secretary, Revenue & Disaster Management Bishnupada Sethi; Principal Secretary, Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water DK Singh, and other senior officials attended the meeting.