ASHRAYA SCHEME

ASHRAYA SCHEME

Ashraya scheme to adopt 107 families

Ashraya scheme, an integrated State government programme to address problems confronted by the underprivileged, will be rolled out in Nedumangad Municipality on August 15.The scheme, considered an important intervention programme of the government that involves local bodies, will help 107 families get better housing, food, water, medical assistance, and education facilities for children.The programme forms part of the Rs.12 crore annual plan of the civic body, approved last month by the district planning committee. The civic body has made available a sum of Rs.82 lakh in the current plan for implementing the programme this year itself.The scheme would be launched on Independence Day by providing free food for members of the 107 families, identified by the Kudambasree Mission on the basis of a nine-point criteria laid out by the government, Lekha Suresh, Chairperson of the Municipality, said.

“The scheme is actually a package that covers food, health, and education needs of the members. In fact, the entire needs of the family will be taken care of by the Municipality,” she said.Housing, which formed the main component of the programme, would be provided to the families before the end of next financial year, she said, adding work for providing houses to around 80 families would commence this fiscal itself.As far as food requirement was concerned, the civic body would use the services of Kudumbasree volunteers to supply provisions to the family members at their door step.The supply of rice would be on the basis of 10 kg rice per person for a month and if there was more than four in a family, the quantum of rice supplied would be 35 kg a month.

Other schemes

Apart from Ashraya scheme, the other major programmes approved for current year included modernisation of Girls Higher Secondary School, Pazhakutti LPS, Mancha Boys High School, and Nedumangad Boys UPS at a cost of around Rs.1 crore.Ten rooms would be constructed in the pay ward of the Taluk hospital at Nedumangad at a cost of Rs.86 lakh. A sum of Rs.5 crore had been set aside for road improvement works, Ms. Suresh said.Under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, work to clean up Killiyar would also be taken up, she added.The Municipality had availed itself a loan to the tune of Rs.7 crore from the Housing Urban Development Corporation to construct Town Hall at Nedumangad, the chairperson said. While an array of programmes has been lined up for the fiscal, uncertainty looms large about how promptly the Municipality can meet the deadlines set for each of the programmes.“The civic body has set a deadline for implementing all its major programmes but we are worried whether we will be able to meet the target because the Secretary’s post has remained vacant for the last two and a half years. The Superintendent, who is holding the additional charge, has got limitations in taking forward the schemes,” she said.

                        Prof. John Kurakar