Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister, Hardeep Puri, has announced that the finer aspects of a new home loan scheme aimed at providing relief in interest on home loans for urban dwellings will be disclosed in September. The scheme, which was initially introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day address, targets middle-class families residing in rented accommodations, chawls, tenements, and unauthorized colonies in cities.
Addressing a press conference, Puri explained that the specifics of the scheme are currently under development and nearing completion. “We are in the advanced stages of developing the details of the new home loan scheme for urban residents, as announced by the Prime Minister on Independence Day. We are almost ready,” Puri stated.
Prime Minister Modi had previously stated, “The weaker sections living in cities face a lot of problems. Middle-class families are dreaming of buying their own houses. We are coming up with a new scheme in the coming years that will benefit those families that live in cities but are in rented houses, slums, chawls, and unauthorized colonies. If they want to build their own houses, we will assist them with relief in interest rates and loans from banks that will help them save lakhs of rupees.”
The housing ministry is actively implementing the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) for urban areas, launched in 2015. While three out of four verticals of the scheme have been extended until December 31, 2024, the fourth vertical—credit-linked subsidy scheme—was not extended beyond March 31, 2022. According to the ministry, over 1.18 crore houses have been sanctioned under PMAY (Urban) as of July 31 this year, out of which 76.02 lakh have been delivered to beneficiaries.
Regarding the Amitabh Kant committee’s recommendations on legacy real estate projects, Puri has urged chief ministers to implement them. The 14-member committee has suggested allowing homebuyers to take possession of completed flats even if there are outstanding builder dues, as long as occupancy certificates or no objection certificates are pending.
Furthermore, Puri expressed confidence that the smart cities projects will be completed by June 2022, and the “PM-eBus Sewa” scheme, designed to offer a Metro-like experience, will be rolled out in the next five to six months. Under this scheme, 10,000 electric buses will be provided to 169 cities through a public-private partnership model. Tickets will be available through an automatic fare system, according to Secretary of Housing and Urban Affairs, Manoj Joshi.
Also read: Government Set to Introduce Relief Scheme for Urban Homebuyers, PM Modi Announces