Housing scandal in Vadodara shows misuse of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana

He had promised houses for all by 2022. And as 2019 was drawing to a close, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had patted his back on the success of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).

Referring to sanction given for 10 million houses, the PM tweeted, “This is a momentous achievement for the urban poor and middle class. This initiative has been marked by transparency, use of technology and rapid implementation.” Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister for Housing and Urban affairs tweeted: “Saaf Niyat, Sahi Vikas”.

But a housing scandal in Baroda in the Prime Minister’s home state tells a different story. The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) was pressurized by persistent media reports to take the lid off the scandal involved in allotting houses under PMAY to the ineligible, to those who already owned houses and even to well-off Non-Resident Indians (NRIs).

At least 14 out of 48 flat owners in Gokuldham Cooperative Housing Society, were served with eviction notices. Most of these 14 flat owners had let out the flats and the tenants moved out after the municipal corporation sent the notices.

“These flat owners took houses at subsidised rates, in instalments and on lower interest rates and then let them out on rent while they continued to live elsewhere, presumably in their own houses. This has been going on for the past three years,” alleged Alok Tiwary, one of the flat owners in the society.

Pandya Rajeshlal Bhai, who has a flat, is said to be an NRI. Patel Amrutbhai Babubhai lives in Mehsana but has rented his flat under PMAY, he cited.

Several owners did not qualify for the MIG flats but got the allotment because of their connections. Several employees of the builders also were allotted flats. The site incharge, a sub contractor of the Rajkamal Builders also received the allotment; and so did the sister of one of the directors of the building company. Several flat owners also happen to be employees of the Vadodara Municipal Corporation or are relatives of the employees.

One of the owners, Amrutbhai Patel, wrote to the VMC and argued that he had let out the flat on rent because the prime minister announced the lockdown in four hours. However, the rent agreement shows that the tenant had been paying rent and living there since long before the lockdown.

Bhavik Patel, the site engineer and a flat owner claimed, “from clerks at the VMC up to the Project Engineer, everyone is with us. We get to know about everything. We get to know who complains about us.”

Navendu Parikh, Executive Engineer at VMC, refused to share any information. “we will only give information after something is found, the inquiry is still going on.”

According to official reports, as of December 2019, around 3.69 Lakh homes had been constructed in Gujarat under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Scheme. Questions about the authenticity of these claims and how many of these homes actually uplift the needy have never been stronger.