The State Government’s call for fresh applications for the Livelihood, Inclusion, Financial Empowerment (LIFE) housing project has received a huge response even amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, with more than four lakh applications being submitted to the mission officials since August 1. With the current application window remaining open till August 27, the numbers are expected to cross five lakhs.
As on Wednesday, the number of applications received from across the State stood at 4,37,994. Out of this, as many as 3,26,745 applications are from homeless families who own land, while 1,11,249 applications are from landless families.
“It is a relief that a majority of the applicants own land of their own. Usually delays happen due to issues in identifying suitable land. Availability is scarce, especially in urban areas. We had expected only around 2.5 to 3 lakh applicants. This has gone beyond our expectations now,” said an official off the LIFE mission.
The new application window for the LIFE project has been opened from August 1 to 27, to accommodate those who could not be included in earlier phases. In the previous phases, the beneficiaries were chosen based on a survey conducted by the Kudumbashree. In the current phase, those who received new ration cards up to July 1, can apply.
Earlier this year, in February, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had made the declaration on completion of two lakh houses under the LIFE project, launched in 2016. Over the three phases of the project, as many as 2,24,332 houses have been completed till Wednesday. In addition to this, the Scheduled Caste Development department has completed 19,247 houses, the Scheduled Tribes Department has completed 1,745 houses and the Fisheries Department completed 4,177 houses during this period.
“At the current pace, one lakh more houses are expected to be built under the LIFE mission in the next one year. The initial plan for the third phase was to accommodate landless families in flats. But now many people are coming forward with interest to buy land and construct houses. For the Government too, this is more economical as the cost of individual house in a flat complex is around ₹13 to 14 lakh, while individual houses can be built at ₹4 lakh,” says the official.
