Over 200 poor people get flats in Dehradun

Dehradun, March 5 (IANS) For Phool Chand, a gardener, it was a dream come true when he got an allotment letter for a one-room flat from Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat at a function here on Tuesday.Phool Chand, along with 221 other people, was recently allotted the flat in Dehradun's Transport Nagar area through the lottery system."Now I can live in my own house with full freedom," said an elated Chand, who has now approached banks to get a loan for the flat built by the Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MMDA).Rawat congratulated the people who got the flats and said: "I am hopeful that these people will celebrate the Holi festival in their new house."According to MMDA officials, the total cost of the flat is Rs 9 lakh but each allottee will have to pay only Rs 3.5 lakh. While the MDDA is providing a subsidy of Rs 3 lakh, the Centre is contributing Rs 1.5 lakh through the Prime Minister Awas Yojana and the state government is paying Rs 1 lakh through its housing scheme.Some people were not happy with the size of the flat. Shakuntala Devi said: "We will be spending all our life savings in the flat but it cannot even accommodate four people."
--IANS str/mag/bc