Bangla Awas Yojana is a scheme of the Government of West Bengal, which is mainly designed for the benefit of the economically weaker sections. Under this scheme, families in the state who live in mud houses or whose houses have been severely damaged by floods or storms and who cannot afford to repair their houses are provided with a sum of ₹1,20,000/- for the construction of an affordable house.
The popular central scheme for constructing housing for poor families in the country is the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, under which about 3 crore houses have been constructed. However, in West Bengal, the central government sent more than a dozen teams in 2022 based on several allegations of irregularities in the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) and finally stopped the state’s funds under PMAY in November 2022.
Many poor people have been facing difficulties due to the closure of this central project in West Bengal, so the Bangla Awas Yojana has been launched in West Bengal as a kind of challenge to the center.
What is Bangla Awas Yojana?
The Bangla Awas Yojana is a state government initiative modeled on the central government’s Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) scheme, where the state government will provide the entire amount. The government announcement said that in this case, the list of beneficiaries will be prepared through a completely humane trial.
However, after the central project, this time there are reports of corruption in various places in this state project as well. There have been allegations of exclusion of beneficiaries and nepotism in various districts across Bengal. There have been allegations of exclusion of eligible beneficiaries in places like Sonaijuri, Manbazar (Purulia), Andal (West Burdwan), Goghat (Hooghly), Patharpratima (South 24 Parganas), Rampurhat (Birbhum) etc. and the common people have also protested for the same demand.
The Centre had approved the names of 11 lakh beneficiaries in the list surveyed in November 2022. However, in the case of Bangla Awas Yojana, many names were omitted during the verification of the list and many new beneficiaries were found in the list, which is unusual. In addition, many eligible beneficiaries were excluded from the list as they were not at home during the verification survey, so a re-survey was needed to list them.
The deadline for completing the survey for the Bangla Awas Yojana (BAY) was between October 21st and October 31st, but due to various types of corruption and complaints, orders have been issued to re-verify the list of beneficiaries from Navanna and the government has informed that any kind of corruption will not be tolerated in this regard.
However, another reason for conducting this re-survey is that in this case, along with mud houses, mud houses with tiled or tin roofs have also been included, meaning that many more people than before are now going to benefit from this housing scheme.
The final phase of the survey was completed on November 14th and the draft list will be prepared by November 20th. The list of surveyed names will be published on the BDO, SDO, DM and district official portals between November 21st and November 27th, 2024.
These published names will be approved by the Gram Sabha by December 4th, then by the Block Committee by December 9th and by the District Officer Committee by December 13th. Therefore, it can be said that the West Bengal government has paid special attention to ensuring that the eligible beneficiaries are not deprived of the benefits of the Bangla Awas Yojana.
According to official sources, around 11 lakh 32 thousand families in the state are going to receive the first installment of ₹60,000/- under this scheme in December this year.
Bangla Awas Yojana Details
| Name of the scheme | Bangla Awas Yojana |
| Scheme start | 2024 |
| Type of scheme | State Government Scheme |
| Grant amount | ₹1,20,000/- |
| Responsible Department | State Urban Development Agency |
Objectives of the Bangla Housing Scheme
The main objective of the Bangla Awas Yojana is to build a housing for the lower class people of the state, besides other goals are mentioned below:
- To improve the quality of life of the economically weak and backward families of the state.
- To ensure that no person in the state remains homeless.
- Providing financial assistance for the repair of homes severely damaged by floods or storms.
Bangla Awas Yojana Eligibility
To avail the benefits of Bangla Awas Yojana, the following eligibility criteria must be met:
- The beneficiary will be a permanent resident of West Bengal.
- The annual income of the family should be between ₹1 lakh and ₹3 lakh.
- No one in the family should work in a government job.
- No one in this family should work in a government job.
- Mud houses or brick walls but not roofs are eligible to apply.
Bangla Awas Yojana facilities
Beneficiaries will get the following benefits through West Bengal’s Bangla Awas Yojana:
- Low-income families will receive a strong and new housing at an affordable price.
- Homeless families will find a place to stay.
- Those whose houses have been severely damaged by floods or storms will also receive financial assistance for house repairs under this scheme.
- Through this scheme, lower-income families will get the opportunity to live in a healthy environment.
Required documents for Bangla Awas Yojana
You will need the following documents for the Bangla Awas Yojana:
- Aadhaar Card
- Voter card
- Ration card
- Aadhaar Linked Bank Account Details
How to apply for Bangla Awas Yojana
There is no portal or online facility available for applying for the Bangla Awas Yojana yet. You can apply for this scheme in the following 2 ways, namely, by submitting a written application to the block office or by directly contacting the Chief Minister’s helpline number.
Application through block office
To apply for Bangla Awas Yojana (BAY), you have to go to the BDO office. There is no specific application form for this scheme. You have to write your identity, house condition and requirements on a white paper and submit the application to the block office.
A few days after your application is approved, the block officers will come to your house to conduct a survey and collect photos of you and your house. In case you are not at home, the survey will be completed with the photos and signatures of the remaining family members.
Contact the Chief Minister’s helpline number:
If you find that your house has not been surveyed but you are eligible for the benefits of the Bangla Awas Yojana, you can directly contact the Chief Minister’s helpline number 9137091370 and report your problem. The contact time for the helpline number is from Monday to Saturday from 9 am to 6 pm.
