Bhubaneswar: The state Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water department Wednesday announced that it will distribute close to 20 lakh entitlement cards to the beneficiaries of the pucca ghar scheme through several camps.
The Minister for Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water, Pratap Jena told the media that Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik will kick start the distribution of entitlement cards for pucca houses March 5 onwards. Henceforth, other Cabinet ministers from will take part in different camps and distribute the cards among the beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, the Odisha government has issued guidelines regarding the manner in which the campaign will be undertaken. It said that the camps to be organised at the block-level will be chaired by the ministers. If ministers are unable to attend the block-level programmes, local MLAs will take part in the distribution of cards.
During his interaction with the media Wednesday, the minister further said, “On March 5 we will be observing the Panchayati Raj Divas. On that day, the Chief Minister will commence the campaign by distributing the eligibility cards to the beneficiaries of the pucca ghar scheme. Around 20 lakh such beneficiaries from the state will receive the entitlement cards. All the cards will only be distributed among the beneficiaries at their respective blocks.”
Jena added that the campaign to distribute the cards will end March 31. The ministers have been designated to visit such camps to distribute these cards, Jena said.
According to the norms prepared for the distribution of the cards at each camp, a sum of Rs 20,000 will be disbursed from the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) contingency fund. The block development officers (BDOs) have been asked to download the list of beneficiaries and make necessary arrangements for the camps.
The department, as per the norms, will give the entitlement cards and holograms to the BDOs, who will prepare the cards with the names and special serial numbers of the beneficiaries for further action. Aside from the Collectors, special officials will be asked to streamline the campaign in the districts.
PNN