Telangana to launch ‘Gruha Lakshmi’ house scheme

HYDERABAD: Telangana will launch a new scheme Gruha Lakshmi from next month to provide Rs 3 lakh aid to the poor women to build their own house on their land while distribution of 4 lakh acres of 'Podu' land titles to 1.5 lakh tribals will begin from June 24.

The announcements were made by Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao at the state formation day celebrations on Friday.

Launching the 21-day long decennial celebrations at the main official event held at state Secretariat, he said that Gruha Lakshmi scheme is for the poor who have their own land but cannot build houses.

Under this scheme, Rs 3 lakh will be provided for the construction of each house in three phases. The government will spend Rs 12,000 crore for the implementation of this scheme for construction of 4 lakh houses.

As part of the decennial celebrations, the government has also decided to distribute house plots to the eligible on the government across the state. Eligible poor will be identified and they will be allotted land in the respective villages.

KCR, as the Chief Minister is popularly known, also announced that 4 lakh acres of 'Podu' land titles will be distributed among to 1.5 lakh tribals from June 24.

This will fulfill the long-standing aspiration of tribals. As a permanent solution to the problem of podu lands, the government is providing land rights to the tribals. As many as 1.50 lakh tribals who depend on forest lands are given ownership rights over four lakh acres of podu lands. Steps are also being taken to apply Rythu Bandhu scheme for these lands.

He also announced that on the occasion of the decennial celebrations, the government will provide Rs.1 lakh financial assistance each to artisans as a financial incentive for their professional work. This will benefit the families of Rajaka, Nayi Brahmin, Vishwa Brahmin, Kummari, Medari etc.

KCR also announced that the second phase of sheep distribution among Golla Kurmas will be launched during the decennial celebrations. Under this phase, sheep will be distributed among 3.38 lakh people at a cost of Rs 5,000 crore.

In the first phase, 82.64 lakh sheep were distributed to 3.93 lakh beneficiaries at a cost of Rs 6,100 crore.

To prevent the problem of anaemia in pregnant women, the government is providing nutrition with proteins and vitamins through KCR nutrition kits for the healthy growth of the foetus. Already this scheme has already started in 9 districts and is yielding good results. KCR announced that the scheme will be extended to the remaining 24 districts.

He also announced that the second phase of Dalit Bandhu scheme will benefit 1.30 lakh families during the current financial year. Under the scheme, the government is providing financial grant of Rs 10 lakh to every Dalit family to start any business of its choice.

The state government has already covered 50,000 Dalit families by spending Rs 5,0000 crore. It also made a budgetary allocation of Rs 17,700 crore for the current financial year.

KCR's announcements assume significance as the Assembly elections in the state are due towards the end of this year.

KCR said the state has become a strong economy in the country but it has several more goals and milestones to achieve. He asserted that Telangana has become a strong economic force and a model for the entire country by overcoming the obstacles in a short span of nine years.

The Chief Minister said Telangana's GSDP grew to nearly Rs 13 lakh crore from Rs 5.06 lakh crore in 2014. The state's per capita income also grew to Rs 3.17 lakh in 9 years from Rs 1.24 lakh.

During one-and-a-half hour long speech, KCR explained the journey of Telangana during the last nine years and the progress made by it. He pointed out that Telangana is the only state where 100 per cent households are supplied with purified fresh water through taps.

He recalled how the state began its journey with obstacles like uncertainty in power and water supply and resource crunch. He explained how the BRS government brought a transformation with its commitment and hard work.

The Chief Minister pointed out that Telangana now topped the country in per capita power consumption while it was competing with Punjab as the largest paddy producer.

He claimed that Telangana's policies with human face have become role models for the country with several states emulating them.