CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board (TNUHDB) is facing a massive financial challenge to maintain the 1.8 lakh tenements constructed for the urban poor in Chennai and other towns and is now planning to share the maintenance charges with the residents under Nam Kudiyurpu, Nam Poruppu Scheme.
The board requires Rs 26.62 crore per annum for maintenance of the urban tenements. And the collection is mostly Rs 750 and Rs 250 per month as maintenance charge for tenements with lift facility and those without lift facility respectively. The collection, however, adds up to Rs 8.25 crore only. This means the board is short of Rs 18 crore required to maintain the tenements.
Now the board, instead of solely maintaining the tenements, is implementing the scheme where in the responsibility is shared with Resident Welfare Associations of the tenements. A Government Order (G.O.) in this regard has been passed by Housing Secretary Hitesh Kumar Makwanna.
It is learnt that the managing director of TNUHDB has sent a proposal to the housing department to implement the scheme wherein it was recommended that the concept of maintenance of the tenements by the owners, with the government providing only partial assistance, be propagated.
The financial implication of implementing the scheme would be Rs 20.41 crore, Rs 40.82 crore, and Rs 40.82 crore for financial years 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24. Under the scheme, the State will provide a matching grant to the board that will be equivalent to the actual resident welfare maintenance charges collected, not to total charges due.
The release of a matching grant will be done on a quarterly basis to the board’s account after equivalent residential welfare association contributions have been credited and certified. The government contribution is capped to the present rates of Rs 750 and Rs 250 per month as maintenance charge for tenements with lift facility and those without lift facility, according to the G.O.
Vanessa Peter, Policy Researcher Information and Resource Centre for the Deprived Urban Communities, told TNIE that besides finance, the scheme should also have other components - facilitating formation of Residents Welfare Associations (RWAs) with enhanced participation of women and other vulnerable sections like persons with disabilities and transpersons.
It is learnt that the government is also looking at the social component. These include various capacity building training exercises for the associations and it would be charted out with the help of National Urban Livelihood Mission.