GHAZIABAD: After nearly eight years, the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) has commenced the handover of flats to beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY).
In Madhuban Bapudham, over 300 registrations have been completed for 856 units constructed. Possession is being granted to beneficiaries selected via a lottery system.
Officials stated that work in other areas is also nearing completion, with possession likely to begin soon. This includes 1,200 units in Pratap Vihar, 480 in Noor Nagar, and 528 in Newari, where a 400 KLD STP and an access road have been developed for Rs 3 crore.
Launched in 2015, the PMAY aims to provide affordable housing to economically weaker sections. In Ghaziabad, the scheme was announced around 2017 but faced numerous delays. Initially, challenges such as insufficient funding and delays from various agencies like PWD, UP Jal Nigam, and the electricity department hindered timely water, electricity, and road access to the housing complexes.
Under PMAY, the cost for each flat is Rs 6 lakh, with the central government contributing Rs 2.5 lakh, the state government adding Rs 1 lakh, and beneficiaries required to pay Rs 2.5 lakh. To be eligible, a beneficiary’s annual family income must be below Rs 4 lakh.
While the GDA is delivering units in its projects, private developers are still lagging behind. In Ghaziabad, 11 developers were set to construct 6,481 units under PMAY, but less than 50% has been completed, with no units allocated yet. This is despite incentives offered to encourage private development under the scheme.
Due to these construction delays, the Authority previously revoked the license of the Signature Building project in Raj Nagar Extension, which was supposed to provide over 400 PMAY units.
The incentives for private developers include a 50% rebate on development fees and exemption from land use charges, contingent on project completion within 24 months. As developers failed to meet this deadline, they forfeit any waiver or concession.
Additionally, group housing developers are mandated to allocate 10% of the flats for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) and another 10% for Low-Income Groups (LIG), officials stated.
