PMAY-U: Housing, Inclusion and Empowerment

Why in the News?

The Ministry highlighted the achievements of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U) and the progress of PMAY-U 2.0, aimed at achieving Housing for All in urban areas. PMAY-U was launched in June 2015, while PMAY-U 2.0 was launched in September 2024.

Key Highlights

PMAY-U

• Provides all-weather pucca houses with basic civic amenities to eligible urban households.
• Focuses on:
  • Economically Weaker Sections (EWS)
  • Low Income Groups (LIG)
  • Middle Income Groups (MIG)
  • Slum dwellers
• Original mission period was up to March 2022, extended up to 30 September 2026 for completion of sanctioned projects.

PMAY-U 2.0

• Launched in September 2024.
• Implementation period: 2024-2029.
• Target: 1 crore additional urban poor and middle-class families.
• Financial assistance: up to ₹2.50 lakh per unit.
• Also includes affordable rental housing.

Income Categories

• EWS: Annual income up to ₹3 lakh
• LIG: ₹3 lakh to ₹6 lakh
• MIG: ₹6 lakh to ₹9 lakh

Four Verticals of PMAY-U 2.0

1. Beneficiary-Led Construction (BLC)

• Financial assistance up to ₹2.5 lakh.
• For eligible EWS families.
• Construction on own available land.
• Maximum carpet area: 45 sq m.

2. Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP)

• Public/private agencies construct affordable houses.
• Houses generally have 30-45 sq m carpet area.
• Financial assistance up to ₹2.5 lakh per unit.

3. Affordable Rental Housing (ARH)

• Provides affordable rental accommodation.
• Covers EWS and LIG beneficiaries, including:
  • Migrants
  • Homeless persons
  • Industrial workers
  • Working women
  • Construction workers
  • Street vendors
  • Rickshaw pullers
  • Contractual workers

4. Interest Subsidy Scheme (ISS)

• Provides interest subsidy on eligible home loans.
• Applicable to loans sanctioned and disbursed on or after 1 September 2024.
• Covers EWS, LIG and MIG beneficiaries.

Major Achievements

As of 9 August 2026:

• 1.25 crore houses sanctioned under PMAY-U and PMAY-U 2.0.
• More than 1 crore houses completed and delivered.
• Under PMAY-U 2.0:
  • 18.38 lakh houses sanctioned
  • 14.40 lakh under BLC
  • 2.48 lakh under AHP
  • 1.36 lakh under ISS
  • 13,046 dwelling units under ARH
• Around 1 crore houses among the 1.25 crore sanctioned were allotted to women, either in the name of the female head of household or through joint ownership.

Inclusion and Empowerment

PMAY-U promotes:

• Women ownership/co-ownership of houses.
• Housing access for:
  • Scheduled Castes (SCs)
  • Scheduled Tribes (STs)
  • Other Backward Classes (OBCs)
  • Minorities
  • Senior citizens
  • Persons with disabilities
  • Transgender persons

Technology-enabled Implementation

• Unified Web Portal: application, processing, tracking and fund disbursement.
• PMAY-U Dashboard: real-time monitoring of key indicators.
• Geo-tagging: tracks houses through five stages:
  1. Grounding
  2. Foundation
  3. Superstructure
  4. Finishing and external development
  5. Completion
• Technology Sub-Mission (TSM): promotes modern and disaster-resilient construction technologies.
• Technology and Innovation Sub-Mission (TISM): promotes innovative, green and climate-responsive housing.
• Technology Innovation Grant (TIG): supports innovative technologies in AHP projects.

Prelims Quick Revision

• PMAY-U: launched in June 2015.
• PMAY-U 2.0: launched in September 2024.
• PMAY-U 2.0 period: 2024-2029.
• Target: 1 crore additional families.
• Four verticals: BLC, AHP, ARH, ISS.
• PMAY-U 2.0 covers EWS, LIG and MIG.
• ARH focuses on rental housing, including migrants and working women.
• ISS relates to home-loan interest subsidy.
• Technology tools include geo-tagging, dashboards and unified digital platforms.