Kerala govt clears Rs 1,500 cr HUDCO loan to support housing scheme

Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 20 (PTI) The Kerala Cabinet on Wednesday approved in principle a plan to raise Rs 1,500 crore from the state-run Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO), through the Kerala Urban and Rural Development Finance Corporation (KURDFC), to support the state’s flagship LIFE Mission housing scheme.

The loan, backed by a government guarantee, will be utilised to provide financial assistance for 1,27,601 houses under construction and to extend support to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe families in grama panchayats with a higher concentration of beneficiaries, officials said after the Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

The borrowing will be raised in two tranches of Rs 750 crore each in 2025-26 and 2026-27, an official release said.

Repayment will be spread over 15 years, with the principal deducted from the development funds of local self-government institutions and routed to HUDCO via KURDFC. The state government will bear the annual interest payments through budgetary allocations.

The LIFE mission seeks to provide homes for all landless and homeless families in Kerala, with a special focus on marginalised communities.

Among other decisions, the Cabinet approved a cash gift of Rs 1,000 each for 52,864 Scheduled Tribe members above the age of 60 as part of the state’s 2025 Onam celebrations.

Pensioners from central, state and semi-government institutions will not be eligible. The state will release Rs 5.29 crore from the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund to cover the expense.

The Cabinet also said guidelines would be issued on paying bonuses to employees of state public sector undertakings for 2024-25, based on recommendations from the Industries Department and the Planning and Economic Affairs Department. PTI LGK SSK