Jammu Tawi : The decision of the Jammu Kashmir Housing Board to allot flats to non-locals in Jammu has come under sharp criticism from various political parties including National Conference and Congress.
National Conference has said that it shows the real intentions of Bhartiya Janata Party which is eager to dislodge locals from Jammu. “People of Jammu have now started realizing that non-locals are being preferred over them. There is resentment among the people of Jammu and they will surely give vent to their frustration when they will oust the Bhartiya Janata Party from the region,” the party said.
Congress said that it is unfair to settle non-locals in Jammu. The party said that locals of Jammu are angry and the decision taken by the Housing Board is illogical. “Only the government elected by the local people has the mandate to take such kind of decisions,” the party a report of news agency KNT said, adding that If the Housing Board has sufficient flats available, then it should first offer those to local people of Jammu and not to outsiders.
Pertinently, Housing Board has announced that it will allot at least 336 flats to non-locals. This scheme is under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana mission.
Bhartiya Janata Party however has backed the decision saying that India is one and there is no harm if non-locals settle in Jammu.
According to reports, there are plans to establish Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHC) in Sunjwan, and online applications are being accepted from Indian citizens who have relocated to Jammu for employment, education, or long-term tourism purposes. The purpose of these applications is to allocate a total of 336 flats under the PMAY(U) Mission.
“The scheme titled as “Affordable Rental Housing Complexes” is for providing rental housing for EWS/LIG urban migrants including labour, urban poor (street vendors, rickshaw pullers, other service providers etc.), industrial workers, and migrants working with market, trade associations, educational or health institutions, hospitality sector, long term tourists or visitors, students or any other persons of such category at Sunjwan in Jammu,” the newspaper quoted sources as saying.
As per the report, the allotment process for the flats will commence in the upcoming month of May. The initial phase of allotment will involve 96 flats, while the remaining 240 flats will be allotted in October to eligible beneficiaries under the PMAY scheme. The report also notes that official sources have disclosed that the allottees will be required to pay a modest rent for their flat, which will exclude additional expenses for utilities like electricity and water, which will need to be paid separately.
“So far 96 flats are ready for allotment and the desiring can avail the facility. which has one room, kitchen, hall and bathroom for a period of 25 years,” the sources said.
The rent for the flats will be raised by eight percent every two years. As for the application process, interested parties can apply online until May 15th. The final allotment of flats will only be made after the verification of original documents that are to be submitted when the applicants are called for.
