Amaravati belongs to everyone, houses' construction to start on YSR Jayanti: Jagan

VIJAYAWADA: With a declaration that, “From today, Amaravati belongs to everyone, not just the rich,” Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy launched the distribution of house site pattas to 50,793 beneficiaries and handed over keys of 5,024 TIDCO houses to the allottees for a token payment of ₹1.

“These are not just house pattas but instruments of social justice,” the CM declared.

“Our government fought a legal battle in the Supreme Court for the poor and we won. These houses are worth ₹7-10 lakh and are being registered in the name of my sisters. Social justice has finally been delivered and from now on Amaravati will belong to all.”

Addressing a huge public meeting of beneficiaries before distributing the pattas,   Jagan Reddy said construction of houses in all 25 layouts would begin on July 8, coinciding with the Jayanti of his father and former Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy. In a week, geo-tagging of all beneficiaries would be completed.

He said the government would spend ₹2000 crore for construction of houses and provide infrastructure in 25 layouts, benefiting 23,762 poor women who got house site pattas in 11 layouts in Guntur district and 27,031 women who received the pattas in 14 layouts in NTR district.

“The day remains special not only in the state’s history but also in the history of the country. The TD-backed farmers fought in vain to stop the distribution of house sites by creating legal hurdles and approaching even the Supreme Court saying the demography of the CRDA would be disturbed. These are not just house site pattas, they are instruments to ensure social justice to the poor. This event is historical and unprecedented.”

Explaining the three options under which the houses would be constructed, the CM said, “Under the first option, the government would transfer ₹1,80,000 directly into the bank accounts of the beneficiaries who want to construct the dwelling units on their own.”

Under the second option, the government would transfer the money towards labour expenses directly into the bank accounts of the beneficiaries after supplying them with cement, steel and door frames.

Under the third option, the government would fully take upon itself the responsibility of the construction.

In all three options, sand would be provided free to the beneficiaries while quality steel, cement and door frames would be supplied to them at subsidized rates as per the policy adopted in all Jagananna colonies across the state, the CM clarified.

The chief minister said the government would also arrange bank loans up to ₹35,000 each for all the beneficiaries at a low interest of 25 paise for expediting the construction. The beneficiaries are free to choose the option.

So far, house sites were given to 30, 75,000 poor women across the state, out of which 21 lakh women were sanctioned houses, each worth ₹2.5 lakh, he said, adding that the worth would go up to ₹5 or ₹10 lakh. This meant creating property worth ₹3 lakh crore on the whole, he said.
 
Speaking about the TIDCO houses, Jagan Reddy said the government has been handing over the 300 square feet TIDCO houses for a token payment of ₹1 to 1,43,000 beneficiaries with full rights, while the TD government, during its term, had tried to exploit the beneficiaries by forcing them to pay ₹7.20 lakh per TIDCO flat in installments over several years.