Chandigarh, November 26
With the Punjab Government battling drug charges and fiscal crisis, the Punjab Cabinet, which met here today, seems to be finding a way into the hearts of voters by okaying a plethora of sops for almost all sections of society.

Other than an affordable housing scheme for the poor, the Cabinet also proposed the slashing of VAT on heavy machinery and entrusting the Deputy Chief Minister for slashing VAT on cotton yarn.

The state government, under a new authority -- Punjab State Affordable Housing Development Authority, proposes to construct at least 1 lakh dwelling units for the poor -- the economically weaker section (EWS) and the low income group (LIG).

The dwelling units for the EWS will be constructed on 21-27 sq m while that for LIG will be constructed on an area of 28-60 sq m. This scheme has been introduced through a special ordinance brought in by the state government in the Cabinet today.

Sources in the housing department of the state government told The Tribune that the land for construction of these dwelling units would be provided by the municipal bodies in urban areas and by the Department of Rural Development in the rural areas. Though the design for these dwelling units is yet to be finalised, sources said that that these will have a G+3 design (ground floor and three storeys) and would be constructed in the next two years.

The scheme will be merged with the Housing for All scheme that the Government of India is likely to launch soon. The beneficiaries under this scheme -- those from EWS, LIG, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, minorities, backward classes, physically challenged -- will get a subsidy of Rs 1.25 lakh on the cost of the dwelling units, while the state government is tying up with various banks to finance the remaining cost of a dwelling unit to the beneficiaries at an affordable rate.

The authority to be made for implementing the scheme will be chaired by the Chief Minister and will comprise Deputy Chief Minister or Housing and Urban Development Minister, Local Government Minister, Finance Minister, Labour and Employment Minister, Rural Development Minister and Chief Secretary as its members while Secretary Housing and Urban Development would be its member secretary.

Among the other important decisions taken by the Cabinet today was the decision to wind up four agri-councils -- Organic, Horticulture, Viticulture and Citrus and Agri-Juicing councils. These four councils are a legacy of the previous Congress government and were set up in 2005.

The cumulative losses made by these four councils are to the tune of Rs 150 crore. Over the past nine years, the government has already spent almost Rs 92 crore on these four farm councils. These councils also need to settle their debt to the tune of Rs 58 crore with two commercial banks -- Oriental Bank of Commerce and State Bank of Patiala. The state government is now going to take up their debt liability and go in for a one-time settlement with banks after announcing their closure.

While the Cabinet also okayed the slashing of VAT on heavy machinery in Punjab - the existing 13 per cent plus 10 per cent surcharge to 5.5 per cent plus 10 per cent surcharge, the Cabinet also entrusted the Deputy Chief Minister to lower the VAT on cotton and yarn from the existing 6 per cent to 2 per cent.