Bihar Requests Funds Under PMAY-G

• 30 Aug 2024

Why in News?

Recently, The Rural Development Department (RDD) of Bihar has sent a new request to the Ministry of rural development to approve Rs. 13.5 lakh additional housing units for homeless families under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G).

Key Points

• The RDD has constructed 36.64 lakh dwelling units out of the total 37 lakh units that were sanctioned under the PMAY-G during the period from 2016-17 to 2023-24.
• Each beneficiary under PMAY-G gets Rs 1.30 lakh for a dwelling unit, along with labour cost as per rates under rural employment guarantee scheme Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana- Gramin (PMAY-G)

• Launch:
  • To achieve the objective of “Housing for All” by 2022, the erstwhile rural housing scheme Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) was restructured to Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G) from 1st April 2016, as a centrally sponsored scheme.
  • However, the government missed this target and in August 2022 extended the deadline for ensuring “Housing for All” to December 2024 .
• Ministry Involved:
  • Ministry of Rural Development.
• Status:
  • States/UTs have sanctioned 2.85 crore houses to the beneficiaries and 2.22 crore houses have been completed till March 2023.
• Aim:
  • To provide a pucca house with basic amenities to all rural families, who are homeless or living in kutcha or dilapidated houses by the end of March 2022.
  • To help rural people Below the Poverty Line (BPL) in the construction of dwelling units and upgradation of existing unserviceable kutcha houses by assisting in the form of a full grant.
• Beneficiaries:
  • People belonging to SCs/STs, freed bonded labourers and non-SC/ST categories, widows or next-of-kin of defence personnel killed in action, ex-servicemen and retired members of the paramilitary forces, disabled persons and minorities.
• Selection of Beneficiaries:
  • Through a three-stage validation such as Socio-Economic Caste Census 2011, Gram Sabha, and geo-tagging.
• Cost Sharing:
  • The Centre and states share expenses in 60:40 ratio in case of plain areas, and in 90:10 ratio for northeastern states, two Himalayan states and the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.
    • The Centre bears 100% cost in case of other Union Territories, including the UT of Ladakh.

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)

• About:
• MGNREGA is one of the largest work guarantee programmes in the world launched in 2005 by the Ministry of Rural development.
• It provides a legal guarantee for one hundred days of employment in every financial year to adult members of any rural household willing to do public work-related unskilled manual work at the statutory minimum wage.
  • Active workers: 14.32 Crore (2023-24)
• Major Features:
  • The cornerstone of MGNREGA's design is its legal guarantee, ensuring that any rural adult can request work and must receive it within 15 days.
    • If this commitment is not met, an "unemployment allowance" must be provided.
  • It requires that priority shall be given to women in such a way that at least one-third of the beneficiaries shall be women who have registered and requested for work.
  • Section 17 of the MGNREGA has mandated Social audit of all Works executed under the MGNREGA.
• Implementation Agency:
  • The Ministry of Rural Development (MRD), Govt of India is monitoring the entire implementation of this scheme in association with state governments.