The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHYA) saw a change of guard with both the new cabinet Minister Shri Manohar Lal, and Minister of State Shri Tokhan Sahu assuming office today. They held a joint review meeting with  senior Ministry officials who made presentations on key missions of the Ministry. Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas who was holding charge of Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and MoHUA untill now, was also present on the occasion.

Shri Manohar Lal stressed the need to carry forward the important work on ensuring clean and green cities and appreciated the efforts under the Swatch Bharat Mission to convert waste to wealth as part of the mission to make all our cities ‘Garbage Free’.

In the review meeting, the Minister appreciated the objectives of AMRUT mission to make cities water secure and ensure universal coverage of water supply in 4,900 ULBs and sewerage & septage management in 500 AMRUT cities.

Highlighting the importance of the Metro rail in easing the travel experience of urban areas, the Minister said the Ministry’s efforts to ensure timely completion of all metro projects would be redoubled, as the Metro has become the preferred mode of transport that is convenient and safe for all segments of society.

Further, the Minister noted that the projects completed under the Smart Cities Mission had set new benchmarks in urban planning and governance in the country. The use of technology for better urban management has increased in these cities and the urban services in each of the 100 cities have significantly improved in diverse fields like crime tracking, safety & security of citizens, transport management, solid waste management, water supply, disaster management etc.

Shri Manohar Lal, highlighted the need to further increase the reach of the benefits of PM Svanidhi and DAY –NULM Missions to urban poor in all parts of the country, so as to address multiple dimensions of urban poverty and improve their source of income and livelihoods.

Speaking about the importance of owning a roof over one’s head, he said the PMAY is working during fulfilling the lifelong dream of millions and therefore the Prime Minister’s announcement of making another 1 crore houses under the PMAY (Urban) will be a key priority of the Ministry. He assured effective state level reviews would also be undertaken periodically to ensure timely completeion of all housing projects.

After reviewing the performance, he expressed optimism about the strategic and comprehensive roadmap for sustainable urban development in the country and pledged to take forward the development agenda with  renewed momentum, to achieve an inclusive and Viksit Bharat.

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RKJ/M