Urban Poverty and Slum Development — Basic Structure

Basic Structure

Separate people, places and services

Urban poverty concerns household and individual deprivation. A slum designation concerns settlement conditions and administrative recognition. A housing project concerns a particular intervention. None is a complete substitute for the others when identifying need or assessing results.

Locate municipal responsibilities

The 74th Amendment Act,1992 introduced the municipal framework. Article 243W enables State-law assignment of powers and responsibilities. The Twelfth Schedule includes slum improvement and upgradation and urban poverty alleviation. Actual finance, staffing and authority still depend on devolution and institutional arrangements.

Distinguish PMAY-U 2.0 verticals

BLC: Beneficiary Led Construction.
AHP: Affordable Housing in Partnership.
ARH: Affordable Rental Housing.
ISS: Interest Subsidy Scheme.

The September 2024 guidelines provide for the scheme from 1 September 2024 for five years. It is Centrally Sponsored except for the Central Sector ISS component. Eligibility and income categories vary by vertical; a general scheme description does not establish identical assistance for each household.

Evaluate location and habitability

Compare housing payments, maintenance, utilities and transport with livelihood access. Ownership and rental housing meet different needs. In-situ improvement can preserve networks where feasible, while relocation may be required for risks that cannot reasonably be reduced.

Track sanction, completion, occupation and sustained use separately. Include tenants and people with less visible claims in surveys and correction processes. A completed building is an output; a safe, affordable and usable home is the intended result.