Hyderabad: Financial crisis looms over the government’s flagship 2BHK housing project in the city. Of the Rs 8,600 crore required, the government has released about Rs 1,700 crore.
Nearly 1 lakh houses need to be built but the GHMC has managed to get work started on about 70,000. It has executed works worth Rs 2,000 crore since 2015. Contractors have threatened to halt work until their dues are cleared. The civic body owes them over Rs 300 crore and payments have stopped after the Assembly was dissolved on October 6.
The corporation has managed to complete work on 176 2BHK houses at Singam Cheruvu Thanda in Nacharam. Another 12,022 houses in 17 locations are nearing completion.
At 62,963 houses at 50 locations, the RCC framework is being laid. Sources said that if the funds are released on time, the corporation could delivered 39,000 houses by the year end, and the rest in May next.
A senior GHMC official on condition of anonymity said that the 2BHK housing project could not be completed within the timeframe given by the government if the delay continued in the allocation of funds. The government had set a deadline of May next year for the project.
"The government has not even released 20 per cent of the funds for the project for three years, and forced the civic body to ground 97,594 houses at 104 locations. Work is nearing completion on 12,022 houses, in 62,963 houses construction is at the RCC framework stage. Another 16,459 houses are at the foundation stage and earth is being evacuated for 6,150 houses,” he said.
The official said that a high-rise model township was being built on 124 acres to provide housing to 15,660 beneficiaries. Work was going on at a brisk pace and the contractors have sounded a warning about putting construction on hold
The GHMC official said it would be difficult to resume work once it is put on hold. He said that even though steel prices had shot up to Rs 48,000 from Rs 33,000 during January this year, the government had negotiated with manufacturers and ensured that the work would not be halted.
He said despite fighting several obstacles, the release of funds had become a major hindrance to the project and if did not clear pending bills the 2BHK housing project will to a grinding halt. Meanwhile, the Centre has allocated Rs 190.78 crore to construct 70,674 houses during 2016-2017. The Centre has asked TS govt to return the amount since it has not constructed a single house under Pradhan Manthri Awas Yojana.
