VIJAYAWADA: Aimed at reducing the construction cost of houses under ‘Navaratnalu Pedalandariki Illu’, the State government has decided to establish brick manufacturing units in big housing layouts. Speaking to TNIE, Special Chief Secretary (Housing) Ajay Jain said that Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 can be saved on each house with the initiative.
“There are more than 9,000 YSR Jagananna housing layouts in the State. Over 1,000 plus houses each are planned in 275 housing layouts. If we set up brick manufacturing units in layouts having 1,000 houses, we can save a lot of money,” he said. Jain said that the price for each FAL-G block/brick could be reduced by Rs 5 to Rs 8 by avoiding transportation charges by setting up the brick manufacturing units in the layouts.
“We have asked the Joint Collectors of the districts to identify local entrepreneurs who are willing to set up the brick manufacturing units in the layouts. Since there is a buy-back assurance, securing loans wouldn’t be an issue for the local entrepreneurs and it would be a win-win situation for both the parties,’’ the Special Chief Secretary explained. He further said that there is no need for rent since these units will be set up on the site with proper water and power supply provided by the government at the layouts.
Therefore, besides eliminating transportation costs, the initial cost of setting up the bricks manufacturing units also decreases. Thus, the end products can be supplied at a lower rate. “Brick units have already been set up in Nellore, Srikakulam, Krishna and Guntur districts and the model has been successful, so we have asked all the districts to follow the same,” he added.