Dikhyaa Mohanty 
Odisha Housing & Urban Development Minister Pratap Jena has repeated the demand for the opening of Aawaas+ portal by the Centre for including over 6 lakh houses of the State under Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana – Gramin (PMAY-G).
According to the official reports, in a letter to Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh on Monday, Jena cited earlier discussions and letters over the issue, including that of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The following demands had been put forth through the letters and discussion:
a) Synchronize the data of 6.65 Lakh households in the State-owned Rural Housing Portal with the Awaas+.
b) Sanction 1.84 Lakh Special PMAY (G) houses as promised during May 2019 to Odisha in the aftermath of cyclonic storm “FANI”.
c) Open the Awaas+ window for some time to incorporate names of eligible left out families.
Pratap Jena stated that while the genuine demand of Odisha has not been paid heed to by the Ministry of Rural Development so far, synchronization of data from Karnataka State Government MIS into Awaas+ was allowed on 13.01.2022. he said – “Ignoring the repeated requests from the State will not support the cause of Odisha and it will further deprive lakhs of tribal beneficiaries living in the Scheduled areas of the State and deserving poor people belonging to KBK region and Western parts of the State.”
