Andhra CM directs officials to clear Rs 1,323 crore housing dues to poor

Ahead of the distribution of house site ‘patta’ next week, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday directed officials to clear Rs 1,323 crore housing dues to the poor.

The amount aggregating to Rs 1,323 cores was spent by the poor people on the previous government's assurance and they did not get any reimbursement, an official statement said.

In a review meeting on housing matters, the chief minister told the officials to clear the dues of the previous government towards 3,38,144 houses, it said.

He also asked the officials to take up the housing scheme on a larger scale to benefit the poor sections.

Reddy also decided to go ahead with the house site patta distribution programme on July 8 coinciding with his father Y S Rajasekahr Reddy’s birth anniversary.

In the first phase, over 15 lakh houses would be taken up for construction at Visakhapatnam, Kurnool and Nellore districts.

The chief minister discussed the design of houses and reiterated that standards should be maintained at any cost. Each house would have a living room, kitchen, bedroom, toilet and veranda.

He insisted that the poor should not face any financial burden for getting their house, the statement said.

"Our mega housing programme should be transparent and of high quality and standards. Other infrastructure should also be taken into account in the colonies that would emerge with the building of houses," Reddy said in the meeting.

He asked the officials to ensure that the house registration papers are in the name of the women of the household and the same should be ready by July 8 when the house patta will be distributed.

Housing Minister Ranganadha Raju, Principal Secretary Ajay Jain and other officials were present in the meeting.

Meanwhile, the State Housing Corporation donated two day's salary of its employees amounting to Rs 74,40,112 to the Chief Minister Relief Fund for containing COVID-19.