Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that there was a trust deficit between builders and home buyers, and the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) Act was introduced to remove this problem.
While inaugurating the construction of the Agra Metro project via video conferencing, Modi said, “People with wrong intentions brought disrepute to the entire real estate sector, upsetting our middle class.”
The prime minister said that there was a trust deficit between the builders and the home buyers, and the RERA law was introduced to remove this problem. He added that some recent reports showed that middle class homes were getting completed quickly after the introduction of this law.
He also said that all-round development, from modern public transport to housing, was going to make life easier in cities.
Noting that the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana was inaugurated from Agra, the prime minister said that more than one crore houses have been approved for the urban poor under this scheme.
Modi said help is being provided to middle class families of the city to buy houses for the first time. He said so far, more than 12 lakh urban families have been given help of about ₹28,000 crore to buy houses.
The prime minister said infrastructure like water and sewer are being upgraded in several cities under the AMRUT mission, and help is being given to local bodies to make public toilets better in cities and to implement a modern system of waste management.
“Dreams of today’s new India are big (‘badhe’) and enormous (‘viraat’). But, visualizing the dreams is not enough, courage is needed to fulfil them. When you move ahead with courage and dedication, no obstacle can stop you. The youth of India and smaller cities are displaying this courage and dedication,” he said.
“The role played by metro cities in the 20th century is now being played by smaller cities like Agra,” the prime minister said.
He said that metro rail coaches are being made in India under the Make in India mission. When it comes to the matter of metro network, India is becoming self-reliant, he said, and added that Agra is the seventh city of Uttar Pradesh to have the metro rail facility.
“Agra has an age-old identity. Now, a new dimension of modernity is getting attached to it. The city which has treasured history of hundreds of years is all set to march in tune with the 21st century,” Modi said.
“In the past six years, the speed and scale with which work has been done on the metro network in UP and in the country, shows the identity (‘pehchaan’) and commitment of the government,” he asserted.
Modi also remarked that cities of western UP have everything, which is needed for self-reliance.
“The farmers here have a tremendous potential. In the matter of animal husbandry, this region is a leader in the country. There is a huge scope for the dairy and food processing industry here, and this region is also moving ahead in the service and manufacturing sector,” he said.
He added that with modern infrastructure and modern facilities, this potential of western UP is increasing.
The first Rapid Rail Transport System (RRTS) is being constructed between Delhi and Meerut, he said, adding that a 14-lane expressway between Delhi and Meerut will soon serve people.