Published & Updated as on - 2010-02-18

The Maharashtra government is chalking out a plan to provide houses to 32- lakh families, including 10 lakhs currently living in slums. Most of these slum dwellers are in Mumbai. The remaining 22 lakh families have no houses. They can opt for affordable housing or a 20m x 20m plot for community housing.

The government intends to raise these 32 lakh families above the poverty line with this initiative. Currently, as many as 70 lakh families in the state are below the poverty line.

All 32 departments of the state government have been instructed to help prepare the vision document in time for a launch during the state’s golden jubilee celebrations in May.

The water resources ministry, for instance, aims to increase the percentage of land under irrigation from 16 to 22 over the next five years.This would bring 85 lakh hectares under irrigation.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) is being directed to complete infrastructure work worth Rs1.13-crore over the next five years.

Source: www.pwindia.in