How much amusing it is that on the one hand the Government fails time and again to meet the requirements set forth for implementing a Centrally sponsored developmental scheme and on the other hand it asks for special assistance under the same scheme to renewed project. Indira Awas Yojna is a major Centrally sponsored scheme to provide shelter to the BPL families and J&K State has also been a beneficiary of this scheme. Recently, the State Government has moved a special proposal for sanction of 12,146 additional houses in 18 districts of Jammu and Kashmir affected by the flood and landslides. These houses are divided into two categories viz. completely damaged and partially damaged. The damages had happened during the unprecedented floods the State in September last and also in June -July this year.
The task of foremost importance in this connection is that of identification of partially or fully damaged houses. There has been some hurdle in identification because some cases of fraudulent entries have been detected and this has made the Government rather over cautious and rightly so. However, we are told that the identification of genuine cases has been doubly confirmed. The data provided is that assistance has been sought for 3821 fully damaged houses and for up-gradation of 8325 partially damaged houses. The lists of IAY beneficiaries have been prepared by the Rural Development Department of the State Government through Panchayati Raj Institutions and duly approved by the Gram Sabhas. Not satisfied with the recordings of the Rural Development Department, the Government constituted a committee at district level to ensure that only the genuine families were approved for assistance. Even after being whetted by the concerned bodies at State level, these lists will have to go to the Empowered Committee of the Union Ministry of Rural Development which must approve the lists for sanction by the Union Ministry.
We have said that identification of genuine beneficiaries is a difficult task and generally there are complaints by those who feel they have been done injustice. We hope that the concerned at State level, be it the Gram Sabha or the Panchayat forum or other verifying agencies, will have made it certain that there is no fake entry in these lists.
This notwithstanding, there is another difficulty in the way for this scheme. The districts of Jammu and Rajouri have been the beneficiaries of Indira Awaas Yojna in the financial year 2010-11. The procedure of the Union Ministry of Rural Development is that the concerned authorities in the State have to submit a Utilization Certificate to the Union Ministry before any application for fresh grants is made. However, it is reliably learnt that the Utilization Certificate in the case of Jammu and Rajouri districts for the year 2010-11 have not been furnished to the Union Ministry. As such there is apprehension that the Union Ministry may not be in a position to accept the request of the State for special grants in respect of Jammu and Rajouri districts. Though we would have very much liked that the Union Ministry considers the application for special grants with better sympathy but the norms have to be completed. As such, the Department of Rural Development may as well consider submitting the Utilization Certificate even now for the yard 2010-11 and with that get the special grants released as one time relief. Under IAY, the Centre bears 50 per cent of expenditure and the remaining 50 per cent is to be borne by the State. The cost of rebuilding or repairing of the affected houses in J&K will be in the neighborhood of rupees 28.66 crore rupees of which one half is to be the share of J&K State. It means that the State Government will have to make provision for 14.33 crore rupees for fulfilling the scheme for building new houses and repairing the ones that are damaged.
The important point is that the package for assistance towards rebuilding and repairing of habitats should begin without loss of time because there are just three months left before the harsh winter in the entire mountainous region begins. The affected families should get the shelter before the onset of winter and snow. The way out is that the State Government should expedited sending in the Utilization Certificate and then simultaneously make efforts for the reconstruction of houses and rehabilitation on affected people.
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