Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik urges Union Ministerof Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation Kumari Selja to include Balasore, Jeypore, Jharsuguda, Jajpur under Rajiv Awas Yojana. Patnaik writes a letter to Selja over this issue.
Patanik said that, “The Government of Odisha is fully committed to making the State slum free and has formulated a comprehensive policy for this purpose. We are also in the process of making a legislation for according property rights to slum dwellers and preventing the growth of new slums.”
CM Patnaik further added that, “Six cities of Odisha are at present covered under the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY), which are Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Berhampur, Rourkela, Sambalpur and Puri. So far 2 pilot projects have been sanctioned, namely Rangamatia and Mahisakhal slums in Bhubaneswar and a few more are in the process of submission. Owing to the rapid economic growth and urbanization of the State, it is essential to expand the coverage under RAY by inclusion of new cities. Taking into account the growth of cities and the incidence of slums, it is recommended that the cities of Balasore, Jeypore, Jharsuguda and Jajpur (including Jajpur Road) may be included under the scheme.”
