Hans News Service Hyderabad

Revenue, Housing and Information & Public Relations Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy has said that the State Government is committed to ensuring that no poor family is forced to live in a thatched hut and that every household has access to a safe and dignified home.

Reviewing the implementation of the second phase of the Indiramma Housing Scheme through a teleconference with Housing Department officials on Wednesday, the Minister directed authorities to give the highest priority to families currently residing in huts while sanctioning new houses. Other applications, he said, should be considered only after all eligible hut dwellers are covered.

As part of the initiative, officials have been instructed to conduct an intensive field survey across villages, wards and municipalities to identify hut dwellers and verify existing government records.

The survey will also include verification of around 75,000 applications received during the Praja Palana programme from individuals claiming to live in huts.

Lists of eligible beneficiaries will be prepared at the MPDO level and submitted for approval.

The Minister stressed that the selection process must be transparent and free from discrimination based on caste, religion or political affiliation. Families living in huts, who did not apply earlier have also been given an opportunity to submit applications at their respective MPDO offices, which will be verified through field inspections.

The government has decided to construct 2.5 lakh houses in the second phase of the Indiramma Housing Scheme, with 2,000 houses allocated to each Assembly constituency.

Special emphasis is also being placed on the Roof Replacement Scheme. Under this programme, 50,000 houses statewide--500 in each constituency--will be selected for assistance. Families living in houses with structurally sound walls but unsafe roofs made of tarpaulin sheets, tin sheets or stone slabs will receive financial assistance of up to Rs 2 lakh to construct RCC roofs.

The Minister also directed officials to identify and support incomplete houses sanctioned under previous schemes, including Indiramma and Gruhalakshmi. He reiterated that the Beneficiary-Led Construction (BLC) model would continue, with permission for G+1 construction in urban areas where plot sizes are limited.