Malda: About 4K families in distress due to fund shortage

Malda: Almost four thousand families of two municipalities of Malda — English Bazar and Old Malda — are in deep trouble due to the fund shortage under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.

Destitute people of two municipalities demolished their old slums in the hope of getting new government-built houses. Work on the new houses had also begun but suddenly the government funds stopped being credited into the accounts of the beneficiaries.

As a result, at the moment many of them have to live in a rented house and the rest are spending nights under the open sky. No one knows when the money will be allocated next.

The chairmen of the civic bodies alleged that the funds from the state government have been released but the Union Ministry held up funds.

The work of this project started in Malda in the financial year 2018-19. Nearly 1365 families of English Bazar and 2400 families of Old Malda municipalities are in dire straits on not receiving the second installment of funds for building houses. About nine months ago, Ranjana Prasad, Kajal Mandal, Kanai Malara among many other beneficiaries demolished their old houses in the hope of getting government-built houses but now they have either a rented house or are living with tarpaulins over their heads.

Kajal Mandal said: “We have been spending our days and nights under tarpaulins. We don’t even know when our hardships will come to an end.”

Krishnendu Narayan Choudhury, Chairman of EBM, said: “The Central government has stopped giving money. The people are in real distress.”

Kartik Ghosh, chairman of the Old Malda Municipality, said: “In the financial year 2020-21 and 21-22, we sent the names of around 2,400 people for this scheme. The government approved the list. The state government also paid its first installment but the Central government is not giving money. Due to this, the poor people who had demolished their mud houses in the hope of getting a concrete house, are in trouble.”

Khagen Murmu, BJP MP of North Malda, said: “The Central government has given its share of money. The state is unable to pay its share. They are diverting funds and not submitting utilisation certificates so the funds are getting stopped.”