The Union Cabinet approved the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U) 2.0.

This ambitious scheme aims to construct one crore houses for urban poor and middle-class families over the next five years, with an investment of Rs 10 lakh crore and a government subsidy of Rs 2.30 lakh crore.

Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U)

• ‘Land’ and ‘Colonisation’ are in the State List of the Seventh Schedule of Indian Constitution. Therefore, respective states/Union Territories (UTs) have to address the housing needs of its population. 

• However, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, under the vision of ‘Housing for All’, supplements the efforts of states/UTs by providing central assistance under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U) for construction of houses in the urban areas of the country.

• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) launched Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Urban (PMAY-U) on June 25, 2015 with an aim to provide a pucca house to all eligible urban households.

• Under the mission, a house is deemed completed when it has the basic amenities like electricity, water supply, kitchen and toilet. 

• A PMAY(U) house ensures dignified living along with a sense of security and pride of ownership to the beneficiaries. 

• The mission also promotes women empowerment by providing the ownership of houses in the name of female members or in joint names. Preference is also given to persons with disabilities, ST/SC/OBCs/minorities and transgenders.

• The reformatory steps taken under the mission to realise the dream of Housing for All have not only redefined the urban landscape of the country but also transformed the lives of millions of eligible urban households and the process is still ongoing.

• In 2017, the original projected demand was 100 lakh houses. 

• Under PMAY-U, as many as 1.18 crore houses have been sanctioned by the ministry based on the project proposals submitted by states/UTs, while more than 85.5 lakh houses have already been constructed and delivered to the beneficiaries. 

The scheme is being implemented through four verticals: 

i) Beneficiary Led Construction/Enhancement (BLC)

ii) Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP)

iii) In-situ Slum Redevelopment (ISSR)

iv) Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme (CLSS). 

PMAY-U 2.0

• PMAY-U 2.0, with an investment of Rs 10 lakh crore, will address the housing needs of one crore families, ensuring that every citizen leads a better quality of life.

• State/UT share shall be mandatory under PMAY-U 2.0. Apart from the minimum state share, the state governments may also provide additional top-up share to increase the affordability.

PMAY-U 2.0 eligibility criteria

• Under the PMAY-U 2.0, families belonging to Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), Low Income Group, or Middle Income Group having no pucca house anywhere in the country are eligible to purchase or construct a house.

• EWS households are families with an annual income up to Rs 3 lakh.

• LIG households are families with an annual income from Rs 3 lakh up to Rs 6 lakh. 

• MIG households are families with an annual income from Rs 6 lakh up to Rs 9 lakh.

PMAY-U 2.0 components

The scheme seeks to address the affordable housing requirement in urban areas through following verticals:

i) Beneficiary-Led Construction (BLC): Under this vertical, financial assistance will be provided to individual eligible families belonging to EWS categories to construct new houses on their own available vacant land. In case of landless beneficiaries, land rights may be provided by states/UTs.

ii) Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP): Financial assistance will be provided to EWS beneficiaries for owning houses being built with different partnerships by states/UTs/cities/public/private agencies.

iii) Affordable Rental Housing (ARH): This vertical will create adequate rental housing for working women/industrial workers/ urban migrants/homeless/destitute/ students and other eligible beneficiaries. ARH shall ensure affordable and hygienic living spaces for urban dwellers who do not want to own a house but require housing for short term basis or those who do not have the financial capability to construct/buy a house.

iv) Interest Subsidy Scheme (ISS): The ISS vertical will provide benefits of subsidy on home loans for EWS/LIG and MIG families. Beneficiaries taking loan up to Rs 25 lakh with house value up to Rs 35 lakh will be eligible for 4 per cent interest subsidy on first Rs 8 lakh loan up to 12 years tenure. A maximum of Rs 1.80 lakh subsidy will be given to eligible beneficiaries in five-yearly installments through push button.

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