Tamil Nadu is the most urbanised state in India, says EPS

CM thanks PM for including State under Housing Technology Challenge, during foundation-laying event for tenements at Perumbakkam
Deputy Chief Minister O Paneerselvam called on Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami at the Secretariat in Chennai and wished him on the ocassion of New Year on Friday
Deputy Chief Minister O Paneerselvam called on Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami at the Secretariat in Chennai and wished him on the ocassion of New Year on Friday

CHENNAI: “Tamil Nadu is the most urbanised State in India, where 48.45 per cent of the population live in urban areas, in which 14.63 lakh families live in urban slums. To address their difficulties, former CM Jayalalithaa had unveiled ‘Tamil Nadu Vision 2023’, which envisaged slum-free cities in the State by 2023,” said Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami. He was speaking at the foundation-laying event for eco-friendly tenements for the poor at Perumbakkam, on Friday.

Stating that the Centre has sanctioned construction of 31,62,720 storeyed tenements and 3,42,769 individual houses at a total cost of Rs 27,000 crore, the Chief Minister thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for including Tamil Nadu under the Global Housing Technology Challenge -- India. 

The unit cost per house is Rs 1.20 lakh, which includes Rs 72,000 from the Centre and Rs 48,000 from the State. The State would also provide a grant of Rs 50,000 towards reinforced cement concrete roofing. In addition, Rs 23,000 in wages, under the MGNREGA, would be given to each beneficiary towards construction of toilets.

“When I reviewed the scheme recently, I found the present unit cost is insufficient for the poorest of the poor to construct a house, due to rise in prices and loss of livelihood due to Covid. So, I sanctioned an additional Rs 70,000 to each house, increasing the unit cost from Rs 1.70 lakh to Rs 2.40 lakh. This will cost the State Rs 1,805 crore for constructing of 2.5 lakh houses,” Palaniswami added.

Deputy CM O Panneerselvam, and Governor Banwarilal Purohit also attended the video conference. Modi also laid foundation for similar LHPs in UP, Tripura, Jharkhand, Gujarat, and MP. These projects, Modi said, would comprise modern technology and innovative processes, and reduce the construction time making it more resilient, affordable and comfortable for the poor.

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