Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced the completion of 3 crore 'pucca' houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.

Lauding the completion of 3 crore 'pucca' houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, PM Modi said that the houses have also become the "symbol of women empowerment".

Taking to Twitter, PM Modi said: "We have made an important step in our resolve to provide pucca house to every poor of the country. The construction of more than three crore houses has been possible only with the participation of the people. These houses with basic facilities have also become a symbol of women's empowerment today."

Under the PM Awas Yojana (rural), the construction of 2.52 crore houses has been finished. For this, the amount of Rs 1.95 lakh crore was sanctioned. As many as 58 lakh houses have been constructed under the PM Awas Yojana (urban) so far. An amount of Rs 1.18 lakh crore was sanctioned for the purpose.

Launched in 2015, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (rural), aims to provide ‘pucca’ houses to the poor population of the country who cannot afford or build a shelter. The initiative was launched with a target of building 2 crore affordable houses by 31 March 2022. Under the PMGAY scheme, financial assistance worth ₹120,000 (US$1,600) in plain areas and ₹130,000 (US$1,700) in difficult areas (high land area) is provided for construction of houses. These houses are equipped with facilities such as toilet, LPG connection, electricity connection, and drinking water, convergence with other schemes e.g., Swachh Bharat Abhiyan toilets, Ujjwala Yojana LPG gas connection, Saubhagya Yojana electricity connection, etc. The houses are allotted in the name of the woman or jointly between husband and wife.

Image source: ANI