Officials to ensure that the poor have entire package of benefits

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked his team to ensure that the complete package of benefits offered by his government under flagship schemes -- from electricity and gas connection to drinking water supply -- reach the poor, along with houses built under the PM Awas Yojna (PMAY) in rural areas. During a recent meeting of secretaries, PM Modi asked officials to link all beneficiary oriented programmes and schemes schemes such as rural drinking water programme, rural electrification and Ujjwala to the rural component of PMAY. Modi also asked officials to monitor the convergence of all these schemes. The government has set the targets to build three crore houses for the poor in rural areas by 2022. Sources said PM’s recent direction is to ensure that the houses built under the PMAY have all the necessary facilities to bring visible change in people’s lives. In 2014, the government had announced that by 2022 every family will have a pucca house with water connection, toilet facilities, 24x7 electricity supply and access. The PM, while launching the scheme, had said that owning a house is dream for the poor and once they have a home they have higher aspirations. Launching the rural component of PMAY in February 2016, Modi had said the scheme was not merely an infrastructure programme, but it was aimed at bringing to life the dreams of the poor.