Vijayawada: After announcing more benefits in the Annadata Sukhibhava scheme for farmers that was offered by YSR Congress president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, Telugu Desam supremo and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has gone a step further and announced a loan waiver for the affordable housing scheme.
The YSRC chief had promised to waive home loans taken by beneficiaries of government housing schemes. Mr Naidu responded by promising a similar loan waiver, and said the government has quickly worked out the modalities.
Mr Naidu’s announcement calls for Rs 9,219 crore worth of loans to be waived of 43,35,557 beneficiaries.The total cost of the housing project for the weaker sections is Rs 19,814 crore, and the cost of land is Rs 39,667 crore. The total asset value, including cost of land, would be Rs 59,512 crore.
Houses completed with a loan component up to 2014-15 will be considered for the waiver, said a senior government officer.Tenure rights will be given and property will be registered in the beneficiary’s name. Loans can be raised by beneficiaries by mortgaging the house, the officer said.
The AP State Housing Corporation Limited (APSHCL) is the implementing agency of the weaker sections housing programme in the state. The Centre’s Awas Yojana is also being implemented by the housing corporation.
It provides technical assistance through field engineers and financial assistance by way of transfer of the funds received from government to beneficiaries through their individual bank accounts.
The government has been sanctioning budget to meet subsidy, loan component and managerial subsidy. In addition, the government has extended the guarantee for mobilisation of loans from Hudco, National Housing Bank and other financial institutions.
“Though beneficiaries are living in the houses in much improved conditions, they have been unable to repay loans to the government for years together and cannot free themselves of the loans granted by the government/ financial institutions as the case may be,” said the senior official.
“Since the house site and the house constructed are mortgaged to AP State Housing Corporation or the government or financial institutions, they do not possess a clear title in their favour though they are the peaceful enjoyers of the property. Their financial status could not be improved.
To improve the credit worthiness of the beneficiary, which will enable him to raise loans from financial institutions/banks and pump the resources into the market through entrepreneurial activity, a new scheme is proposed to be floated by the government.”
