JAMMU: On Friday, the Jammu and Kashmir government announced that over 31,000 houses have been constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) since the program began. The construction of several units is currently ongoing, primarily due to constraints faced by beneficiaries.
In response to an assembly inquiry, the government stated that 39,153 houses have been sanctioned under the beneficiary-led construction (BLC) vertical of the PMAY-urban mission 1.0 across the Union Territory. Of these, 31,173 are complete and 7,980 are still under construction, with a goal to finish by the extended mission deadline of September 2026.
District-wise data indicates that Jammu district has the highest number of sanctioned houses at 5,755, followed by Baramulla at 4,165 and Anantnag at 3,856. In Srinagar, 3,508 houses were sanctioned, with 2,664 completed and 844 still under construction.
Concerning the Lal Chowk Assembly constituency, the government noted that 423 houses were sanctioned under PMAY-Urban 1.0, with 263 completed and 160 ongoing.
For PMAY-Urban 2.0, the government reported receiving 21,271 applications under the BLC vertical via the Unified Web Portal. Of these, 16,830 have been verified, 2,641 are pending, and 2,863 have been deemed eligible. So far, 2,120 houses have been approved, with financial assistance totaling Rs 53 crore.
Additionally, under the Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP) vertical for PMAY-Urban 2.0, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has approved 1,272 flats, including 760 units for economically weaker sections at Bhalwal, 208 at Roop Nagar, and 304 at Chakhar Sundli in Udhampur. Beneficiary verification for these units is currently in progress.
The government clarified that none of the 12 cases sanctioned in Srinagar under the BLC vertical of PMAY-Urban 2.0 pertain to the Lal Chowk constituency.
Addressing concerns regarding delays, the government explained that under the BLC component, beneficiaries primarily undertake construction themselves. Financial aid of Rs 1.50 lakh from the Centre and Rs 0.1666 lakh from the UT is provided in installments, contingent upon construction progress verified through field inspections and geo-tagging. Beneficiaries also need to contribute between Rs 2.93 lakh and Rs 3.39 lakh, which has contributed to delays due to limited financial capacity, challenges in fund mobilization, rising construction material costs, and personal constraints.
To alleviate these issues, the Housing and Urban Development Department has introduced an interest-free loan scheme of Rs 2 lakh per beneficiary through J-K Bank, repayable over a decade, to bolster the completion of houses under the program.
