Sons Living Separately From Fathers in Odisha Eligible for Pucca Houses Under PMAY: State Minister

Bhubaneswar: Sons who live separately from their fathers in Odisha will now be eligible to receive pucca houses under the Union Government's Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) scheme. This update was announced by Odisha’s panchayati raj minister, Rabi Narayan Naik, on Monday, as part of the state's latest efforts to expand housing benefits.

The state government has revised the selection criteria for the fourth phase of pucca house distribution, enabling sons who are no longer living with their fathers to qualify for housing assistance.

“Many individuals have separated from their fathers and are now residing independently with their families. These people will be included as eligible beneficiaries in this round,” said minister Naik.

Naik explained that the government has established ten specific criteria to determine eligibility, with a six-month window for the identification of eligible sons and submission of their applications.

“In the past, many were left out. To ensure that doesn’t happen again, we’ve set up a more inclusive process. After identifying these beneficiaries, we aim to issue work orders within six months,” the minister noted

Taking aim at the previous Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government led by Naveen Patnaik, Naik pointed out the administration’s failure in 2017-18 to prepare a national-level beneficiary list, which left many poor families without access to housing.

“Lakhs of people who should have received houses were left behind,” Naik stated.

The new identification process will involve executive officers of gram panchayats, Panchayat Extension Officers (PEOs), and Block Development Officers (BDOs). Strict action will be taken against officials responsible if any discrepancies are found in the process.

A detailed guideline has been sent to all blocks to ensure smooth implementation, the minister informed