Ramesh writes to FM for rural housing funds

New Delhi: Unhappy about the finance ministry’s reluctance over the proposal to increase funding for building houses in rural areas, rural development minister Jairam Ramesh is seeking to sidestep the expenditure finance committee and wants finance minister P. Chidambaram’s direct intervention.

add_main_imageRamesh, who has publicly expressed his displeasure over the blocking of the pathbreaking land acquisition Bill, has written a letter to Chidambaram seeking a meeting to resolve the impasse on the proposal to increase funding for the construction of houses under the Indira Awaas Yojana, the central government’s rural housing programme.

The rural development ministry had proposed to increase the unit cost of each house in the plains to 75,000 from 45,000 and for the houses in hilly and difficult areas to 80,000 from 48,500. Ramesh, who also holds charge of the department of drinking water and sanitation, has also decided to allocate 9,000 for the construction of toilets. NextMAds

In a 31 August letter to Chidambaram, Ramesh wrote: “The working group constituted by the Planning Commission for the 12th Five-Year Plan considered the matter in depth and in its report in 2011 recommended an assistance of 75,000 per house.”

However, the expenditure finance committee, which met on 30 August, could not reach an agreement on this decision. Ramesh pointed out that the construction of houses even at 348 per square feet would be difficult at the current rate.

liz.m@livemint.com