Indiramma houses for everyone who deserves it: Minister Uttam Kumar

Hyderabad: Civil Supplies and Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy has said that the Congress government is committed to providing housing to all deserving beneficiaries in Telangana over the next five years under the Indiramma Housing scheme.

Speaking to media persons after inspecting a housing colony at Ramaswamy Gutta in Huzurnagar town on Tuesday, Uttam Kumar criticised the previous BRS regime for completely neglecting the housing sector over the last 10 years. He said a hype was created around the 2BHK housing scheme, which in reality proved to be a 'jumla' and a hollow promise.

He accused the previous government, headed by K Chandrashekhar Rao, of cheating homeless people and not delivering anything. Instead, the KCR government stalled housing projects for weaker sections initiated during Congress rule.

Citing an example, Uttam Kumar Reddy mentioned that the Indiramma housing project in Huzurnagar town, with 2,160 units, was started in 2013-14 when he was the housing minister in the Congress government. "The BRS government kept the project in abeyance for 10 years, possibly due to the belief that the credit would come to me. Immediately after coming to power in December 2023, I revived the projects and expedited the works, which are now in an advanced stage of construction. We are likely to hand over 2,160 units to homeless people in the next three months," he said.

Stating that the Congress government is prioritising SC, ST, BC, and minorities in the Indiramma housing scheme, the Minister said there is a plan to construct a total of 4.5 lakh houses at a cost of Rs 22,000 crore, with at least 3,500 houses in each constituency.

"These houses will be 400 sq. ft. with RCC roofing, a kitchen, and a toilet. This financial year, an amount of Rs 7,740 crores has been allocated for the housing scheme. Further, eligible people owning land will be provided financial assistance of Rs 5 lakhs for the construction of a house, with people belonging to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities receiving Rs 6 lakhs," Uttam Kumar said.

Alleging that the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre is completely neglecting Telangana in housing schemes like Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), he said that unlike the BRS and BJP, the Congress has a different approach to resolving the problems faced by the people.

"While the BRS and BJP focus only on publicity, the Congress believes in delivering on the promises made to the people. For this reason, sufficient budget allocations were made to fulfill each promise, along with setting a clear deadline for the accomplishment of targets," Uttam Kumar said.

Later in the day, the minister participated in several development programmes in Huzurnagar town.