Gandhinagar (Gujarat) [India], August 21 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Gujarat on August 25 and 26. During his visit, he will inaugurate 1,449 houses and 130 shops, built at a cost of Rs 133.42 crore under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban), from Nikol, Ahmedabad. The project will provide modern homes with improved facilities to families living in slum areas. Under the leadership of PM Modi and the guidance of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, PMAY has transformed lives in Gujarat.

Under the In-Situ Slum Redevelopment component of the PMAY (Urban), PM will inaugurate the rehabilitation work of a total of 1,449 houses and 130 shops constructed at a cost of Rs 133.42 crore in Sector-3 of the slum popularly known as Ramapir Tekra in Sardar Patel Stadium Ward of the West Zone of Ahmedabad city. This project has been carried out under the Slum Rehabilitation and Redevelopment Policy-2013 of the Urban Development and Urban Housing Department of the Government of Gujarat.

Across Gujarat, under PMAY (Urban), 9.66 lakh houses have been sanctioned against the target of 7.64 lakh, with construction of about 9.07 lakh houses already completed. Gujarat received six national awards in 2019 and seven in 2022 from the Central Government under PMAY (Urban) across various categories.

Under PMAY (Rural), from 2016-17 to 2024-25, the Government of India set a target of 8,43,168 houses, of which 6,00,932 have been completed. For the spill-over target of 2,78,533 houses in 2025-26, 39,092 have been completed between April 1 and August 20, 2025, while 2,39,441 are under construction and scheduled for completion by March 2026. From 2016-17 to August 20, 2025, a total expenditure of Rs 8,936.55 crore has been incurred under the scheme.

Moreover, from 2025-26 onwards, the State Government has introduced an additional assistance of Rs 50,000 per house at the roof-cast level under the PMAY (Rural), fully funded from the state's share. This support is aimed at helping beneficiaries achieve the 2024-25 housing targets as well as future goals. So far, 34,759 beneficiaries have received assistance amounting to Rs 173.80 crore under this provision.

Under the State Government's 'Mukhyamantri Protsahak Sahay Yojana', beneficiaries who complete house construction within six months of receiving the first instalment are given an additional incentive of Rs 20,000. So far, 74,930 beneficiaries have received assistance worth Rs 149.86 crore under this provision. To support women in households, the State Government also provides an additional Rs 5,000 per beneficiary for bathroom construction along with housing.

Till now, 82,845 beneficiaries have availed this benefit, amounting to Rs 41.42 crore. In addition, beneficiaries are eligible for Rs 25,920 for 90 days of employment under MGNREGA and Rs 12,000 for toilet construction under the Swachh Bharat Mission. In total, each beneficiary is entitled to assistance of Rs 2,32,920 under this scheme.

The Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHC) Scheme, launched by the Central Government in 2020 under the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, aims to provide affordable rental housing for the urban poor and workers. Within three months of its announcement, Gujarat became the first state to receive project approval by converting 393 houses into rental units in the Suda area of Surat city, under Model-01.

Gujarat is one of six states selected by the Central Government to implement the Light House Project under the Global Housing Technology Challenge (GHTC). In Rajkot, 1,144 houses have been built using monolithic concrete construction technology with tunnel formwork. (ANI)