Hyderabad: K Jamuna (38) and P Padma (40) are both sisters who migrated to Hyderabad from Munagala several years ago. Both have one thing in common. Their husbands had deserted them long ago, and they are hardworking Dalit single women.
Refusing to be victimised, they have been working odd jobs in Hyderabad to earn a living and feed their children. For several months Jamuna has been running a tea stall and Padma has been selling coconuts on a footpath close to Moosarambagh bus stop.
During the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation’s (GHMC) special drive to clear footpaths recently as part of ‘Operation Rope’, their make-shift stalls (encroachments) were shut down.
They don’t have a shelter in their native village in Suryapet district, as their brothers have been claiming ownership of their parents’ property. In Hyderabad, it is a struggle for survival, with Jamuna suffering heavy loss due to theft, when both her commercial cylinders and heavy utensils were stolen during the night by an unknown person and Padma becoming a victim of policy enforcement.
They both live in small rented rooms close to where they were running their micro businesses.
Mohd Ismail (45), an auto driver from Zeba Bagh, Asif Nagar, has 40% locomotor disability due to spinal fusion performed on his lower back (a rod inserted to support his spine). He pays Rs 300 per day for his rented auto rickshaw and feeds his family of five (including two daughters and a son) with whatever he earns.
All these three individuals are connected with a single dream- to have their own house.
Dream of owning a house
While Padma and Jamuna applied for the Indiramma Illu housing scheme during the ‘Praja Palana’ special drive held to enroll beneficiaries of various state government schemes after Congress came to power; Ismail lost hope after applying for the 2BHK scheme in 2016 and 2018.
“Both times the officials came to my house, and enquired about our socio-economic condition, but I couldn’t get a 2BHK allotment. Having lost hope, I didn’t apply for the Indiramma Illu scheme,” he tells Siasat.com.
80.54L applications received for Indiramma Illu
There are lakhs of people who share their plight, which has been reflected in the number of applications received for houses during the Praja Palana drive- 80.54 lakh prospective beneficiaries, which explains the seriousness of the housing crisis among the people living below the poverty line.
According to revenue and housing minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, during the BRS government, 1,52,000 2BHK houses were supposed to be built, among which 63,000 houses were constructed and given to the beneficiaries.
Among the rest, 36,000 houses were built, but beneficiaries were not identified. There were around 52,000 houses among which even tenders were called for 40,000-odd houses, but works had not started, and for the rest of the 12,000-odd houses, no tenders were called.
While this was the performance of the BRS government, on coming to power after the 2023 assembly elections, the Congress government announced the Indiramma Illu scheme for the poor as part of its six guarantees.
Indiramma Illu specifics
The scheme envisions giving Rs 5 lakh per house to beneficiaries owning land and also intends to build Indiramma housing colonies in villages and mandals for those who didn’t own any land.
The major difference between the earlier 2BHK scheme and the Indiramma Illu scheme is that in the latter, the beneficiaries are given money by the government in four phases, during the four stages of the construction of houses.
The beneficiaries have the liberty to model their houses as per their wishes, but the minimum extent of land for Indiramma Illu is 400 sq ft area, with a kitchen and bathroom/toilet made mandatory.
What the Indiramma Illu survey says so far
The Indiramma Illu mobile App that was launched on December 5 holds the key to the identification of beneficiaries.
As of December 23, out of 80.54 lakh applications, the information of 32 lakh beneficiaries has been recorded in the Indiramma Illu app. The housing minister told the media that by the first week of January, all the applications will be registered, after which scrutiny of the applications will happen.
Among the 32 lakh applications surveyed, 9,19,676 applications were of those having house sites, 1,22,438 were of those having RCC (concrete reinforced cement) constructions, 2,17,096 having asbestos roofs, 41,971 have either plastic or tarpaulin roofs, and 2,17,096 have a tiled roof.
The 4-step check in identifying beneficiaries
The state government plans 4 step check process to ensure that only the poorest of the poor beneficiaries are selected for the first phase of the project, which is to build 4.5 lakh houses in one year, and a total of 20 lakh houses in 4 years. The state government plans to construct 500 houses in each mandal headquarters, for which 474 sites have been identified.
Construction works in mandal headquarters began in Adilabad, Bhadradri-Kothagudem, Mahabubabad, Asifabad, Khammam, Nagarkurnool, Nizamabad, and Vikarabad districts.
The Indiramma Illu committees will hold gram sabhas in villages and ward sabhas in the municipalities/municipal corporations, and determine who will be the beneficiaries under the first phase.
The Mandal Parishad Development Officer (MPDO)/ Municipal Commissioner will conduct a random check of 5% of the data captured in the mobile app.
A district-level officer appointed by the district collector would be the third layer of checking the beneficiaries, and finally, a 360-degree system check will be done using artificial intelligence (AI).
Website and toll-free number for lodging complaints
The housing corporation plans to open a website where prospective beneficiaries can lodge complaints regarding any aspect of the scheme, and soon a toll-free number will be launched for the same purpose.
Telangana Housing Corporation Ltd comes alive again
The BRS government had shut down Telangana State Housing Corporation Ltd during its second term and deputed all the engineers in the department in other departments. After assuming power, the Congress government reopened the department and brought together the same engineers, to work on its flagship Indiramma Illu project.
On Tuesday, December 24, Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy held an orientation/review meeting with the housing officials and gave promotion orders to some of them.
The state government also deputed an executive engineer as project officer for the project in each district, to oversee its implementation.
Zero tolerance towards corruption, minister warns officials
Srinivas Reddy has made it amply clear to the housing officials to ensure that there is no scope for any corruption in the identification of the beneficiaries.
He even went on to say that there would be zero tolerance if any official deviated from his direction of identifying the “poorest of the poor” beneficiaries under the scheme.
He said that single women, widows, persons with disabilities, and those living in huts needed to be top priority.
He asked the officials to first construct Indiramma Illu model houses near MPDO offices in every Mandal by the end of January.
Status of incomplete 2BHKs
Now, the issue remains as to what the state government plans to do with the 2BHK houses left incompletely constructed during the BRS government.
Though there is no final decision taken on that subject, Ponguleti stressed the need to involve the beneficiaries in the completion of those houses, by removing the contractor system.
Power to the beneficiaries
He divided the 2BHK houses into three categories- the ones that are ready but beneficiaries haven’t been finalised, the ones that are nearing completion but beneficiaries haven’t been finalised, and the ones which are still in the early stages of construction, but contractors have deserted them midway.
To finish the houses in the first category, the state government released Rs 196.46 crore on November 25, to provide all basic amenities that were not provided previously. However, according to officials, tenders were called for these works only in 7 districts out of 31 districts for which these works were intended.
In the second category of houses left incomplete, Ponguleti asked the officials to finalise the beneficiaries and allot them houses so that they could be paid the residual amount of the work yet to be completed, which the beneficiaries could complete.
“If we involve the beneficiaries the amount will not be misused, and they will add some more money to complete it if it falls short” he told the officials.
Deliberations on multi-storeyed 2BHK towers in GHMC areas
However, the complication here is with the multi-storeyed dignity housing (2BHK) complexes built during the BRS government, especially those where slabs have been laid but walls and other fixtures weren’t completed, and those buildings where foundations were laid but slabs weren’t constructed.
The state government is deliberating the option of first convincing the earlier contractors to complete them and claim the bills, which the minister assured, would be paid between the 5th and 7th of every month.
If the contractors are not ready to go ahead, the second option of letting the beneficiaries construct the walls, windows, and other fixtures is being considered.
However, the total construction amount would have to be within Rs 5 lakh per unit limit, and there is no scope for further escalation of cost, which has clearly been communicated by the minister to the officials.
One challenge here would be to empower the beneficiaries in G+9 2bhk dignity houses in GHMC areas, where 108 houses are supposed to be built in a single tower.
Some officials are suggesting forming a committee of those beneficiaries, and releasing the residual funds to them directly; so that they can source the raw materials locally, which would also be cost-effective for them.
In smaller municipalities, a 2BHK tower would have 25 houses, in a medium municipality it would be 50 houses in a tower, and in areas like GHMC, it would be over 100 houses in a tower.
The minister has asked the officials to come up with a report with their suggestions about how the incomplete constructions could be completed and handed over to the beneficiaries who have been waiting for years.
Plans for 4 LIG, MIG, HIG colonies around Hyderabad
Ponguleti also announced that the state government was planning to construct housing colonies in four directions of the city, with houses to be constructed on a sprawling 100 acres in each of those colonies.
In these housing colonies, Indiramma houses will be constructed for low-income, medium-income, and high-income groups, and they will be sold at a set price to those interested in owning them- on a no-loss-no-profit basis.
Regarding Gruha Jyothi scheme
On the question of what happened to the Gruha Jyothi scheme that was launched by the BRS government just before the 2023 Assembly elections where the beneficiaries were to be given Rs 3 lakh per house if they owned land, he alleged that only 600-700 houses were given under Gruha Jyothi, that too to those wearing “pink shirts” (BRS party leaders).
“We have no problem in giving houses to those wearing pink shirts, but they will have to fall under the poorest of the poor category,” he added.
The last hope for lakhs of beneficiaries
The successful completion of the Indiramma Illu project and 2BHK houses would be the major deliverables of the Congress government in 2025 and for the poorest of the poor like Padma, Jamuna, Ismail, and lakhs of deserving beneficiaries like them, this Congress’ guarantee is the last glimmer of hope to live a life of dignity.
