Providing affordable housing for all citizen of the country is a significant focus area for the Government of India. To this end, the government, in 2016, revamped the existing rural housing scheme Indira Awas Yojana to introduce the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Gramin or PMAYG.
A look at the PMAYG goals and their fulfilment
Under this scheme, financial support of up to Rs.1.2 lakh will be provided to homeless individuals or those living in kutcha or dilapidated houses from rural areas, to help with the construction or renovation of a pucca house. Moreover, the house will also contain basic amenities like toilet, cooking gas, electricity etc. which will help in improving the quality of life for rural individuals.
The cost of financial aid given to beneficiaries under PMAYG will be shared by the central and the state government in a 60:40 ratio for plain areas and for north-eastern and hilly regions, the shared contribution will be in a 90:10 ratio.
As per a recent data provided by the Union Rural Development Ministry, around 87 lakh homes have been constructed so far under the scheme, which aims to develop around 2.95 lakh houses by the year 2022.
Features and benefits of the rural housing scheme
Some of the main features of PMAY Gramin are as follows –
- This scheme ensures that genuinely deprived Individuals can avail financial assistance with ease. Accordingly, beneficiaries are selected using housing deprivation parameters used in the Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) 2011. The Gram Sabhas further verify the data. Moreover, an appellate process has also been set up to address grievances related to this beneficiary selection process.
- Assistance under PMAYG will be extended to the beneficiary by providing him or her with house design typologies that come with disaster resistance features. It also prevents them from borrowing money from other sources.
- The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Gramin scheme will also facilitate an individual who wishes to avail funding of up to Rs.70,000 from financial institutions.
- Beneficiaries will also be provided with 90 to 95 days of unskilled labour under MGNREGS.
Eligibility Criteria for PMAY-Gramin
Individuals or households who are houseless or live in the kutcha house will be automatically eligible to avail benefits under PMAY Gramin. In addition, the following list of individuals will also be included under this scheme –
- Manual scavengers
- Bonded labourers who have been legally released
- Households whose primary source of income is from manual, casual labour
- A person or a household living on alms
- Primitive tribal groups
- Homes that have no adult member between the age of 16 – 59
- Households where the head of the family is a female with no adult male member within the age of 16-59
- A family that has no literate adult member above the age of 25 years
- Families with disabled member and no able-bodied adult member
- Households with widows
- Households with a single girl child
- Families with a member suffering from leprosy, cancer or HIV
Apart from that, individuals who already live in a pucca house or one with more than two rooms will be automatically excluded. Given below are some other reasons for exclusion from the PMAYG list –
- Individuals who own a two, three or four-wheeler or those who own a fishing boat
- A person or a family owning agricultural equipment
- An individual who has a kisan credit card with a limit of Rs.50,000 or more
- If a member of a family is a government employee with a monthly income of Rs.10,000 or more
- A person or a family that has a refrigerator or a landline connection
- If a member of a family pays an income tax or a professional tax
Consequently, individuals who are not eligible to avail the benefits under PMAY Gramin scheme can opt for home loans for at affordable interest rates against easy-to-meet eligibility criteria and documentation for house purchase, construction or renovation.
However, if you are currently living or planning to move to a city for a job or any other reason, you should know how urban residents can get a house via PMAY.
Moreover, some lending institutions also provide pre-approved offers to borrowers which speed up the loan application procedure. These offers are available on multiple financial products like home loans, loans against property etc. One can check his/her pre-approved offer by entering nominal details like name and contact information.
Also Read: Know the Application Procedure for Availing the Benefits of PMAY Gramin & Rural
However, one should consider important aspects such as how to calculate home loan eligibility, repayment capability, interest rates, associated fees etc. before applying for a housing loan since it is a crucial financial decision.
Thus, while PMAYG is a notable scheme which is helping several Indian citizens to fulfil their dreams of owning a house, individuals can choose other funding options too. With proper financial planning, they can manage the repayment of these financing options conveniently.
Also Read: Home Loan Balance Transfer: When Is the Right Time to Do So?