Hans News Service Visakhapatnam

Ina historic first for Andhra Pradesh, Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development Ponguru Narayana on Wednesday launched the prestigious ‘in-situ slum redevelopment’ project at Lakshmi Nagar in Velampeta, Visakhapatnam.

Laying the foundation stone for the Rs.28.44-crore modern multi-storeyed housing project, Narayana said, “As part of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s vision to transform Visakhapatnam into a slum-free city, a modern residential complex for 177 families will be built at Lakshmi Nagar in Velampeta under the GVMC south zone.

The state government is committed not merely to providing houses to the urban poor, but also to ensuring safe and dignified living conditions, improved quality of life and essential civic infrastructure.”

Expressing satisfaction that families who have been living for many years in congested conditions at Lakshmi Nagar would now be provided modern housing at the same location, the minister explained that conventional slum redevelopment often involves relocating residents to other areas, which may affect their livelihoods, children’s education and established social networks.

The unique project, however, lies in redeveloping the existing slum at the same location without permanently shifting beneficiary families elsewhere, he reiterated, directing officials to make the state’s first such project a model initiative and ensure that its successful implementation serves as a template for redeveloping other slums in the future.

During the foundation-laying programme, the minister interacted with the director of Nagarjuna Construction Company and directed the agency to accelerate construction so that beneficiary families would not have to remain in alternative accommodation for an extended period.

He instructed the construction agency to complete the project in nine months and hand over the houses to beneficiaries by June 2027, to which the company representatives agreed.

Presiding over the programme, south constituency MLA CH. Vamsi Krishna Srinivas stated the project would fulfil the long-cherished aspiration of underprivileged families residing at Lakshmi Nagar.

The MLA said that when the concerns of residents were brought to the government’s attention, Minister Narayana responded positively and took special initiative to bring the project to fruition.

Visakhapatnam District Collector M Abhishikth Kishore said that in-situ slum redevelopment involves several challenges compared with a conventional housing project. Planning within a limited site, arranging alternative accommodation for existing residents, mobilising financial resources and ensuring coordination among various departments were among the major issues that had to be addressed, he emphasised.

GVMC Commissioner Ketan Garg mentioned that the foundation-laying of the Lakshmi Nagar slum redevelopment project marked the beginning of a new chapter in Visakhapatnam’s urban development history.

He said the project, being taken up for the first time in the state under the ‘in-situslum redevelopment’ model, an approach with relatively few examples across the country, would create history.

The modern residential complex will be constructed over 2,691 square yards at a project cost of Rs.28.44 crore, benefiting 177 families. There will be 15 units on each floor from the first to the 11th floor and 12 units on the 12th floor, making a total of 177 units.

The cost of each unit is Rs.16.07 lakh. Of this, Rs.1.50 lakh will be provided under PMAY, Rs.1 lakh by the government of Andhra Pradesh, and Rs.3.50 lakh will be the beneficiary contribution. The rest of the Rs.10.07 lakh will be taken through viability gap funding in the form of TDR.

To facilitate alternative rented accommodation for beneficiaries during the construction of the housing complex, a total of Rs.31.86 lakh was provided as rental assistance, calculated at Rs.3,000 per month.

Following the meeting, the Minister, Collector, Commissioner and MLA handed over assurance letters for the proposed new houses to several beneficiaries.

NTR Vaidya Seva chairman Seethamraju Sudhakar,Swachh Andhra Corporation director B Ramireddy, among others, participated.