Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation: Government Schemes | Indian Economy for UPSC CSE PDF Download

Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation: Policies and Schemes

Street Vendors Act and Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana–National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM)

The Street Vendors Act, implemented through the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana–National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM), addresses urban poverty by promoting livelihoods and economic empowerment. This initiative replaced the Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana, focusing on skill development, entrepreneurship, and self-employment for the urban poor.

Objectives

• Tackle urban poverty through skill training, entrepreneurship development, and opportunities for wage and self-employment.
• Provide shelter with essential services to the urban poor, including the homeless, in a phased manner.
• Address livelihood concerns of the urban poor, ensuring sustainable economic inclusion.

Intended Beneficiaries

• Urban poor, including street vendors, slum dwellers, homeless individuals, and rag pickers.
• Unemployed individuals seeking economic opportunities.
• Differently abled persons in urban areas requiring livelihood support.

Key Features

• Replaces the Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana, streamlining urban poverty alleviation efforts.
• Renamed as Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana, emphasizing inclusive development.
• Organizes urban poor into Self Help Groups (SHGs) to foster community-driven economic activities.
• Provides skill development opportunities leading to market-based employment for the urban poor.
• Ensures easy access to credit for setting up self-employment ventures.
• Empowers all states and union territories to implement DAY-NULM in 3,250 statutory urban local bodies, including those with populations below one lakh.

Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)

The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), encompassing both urban and rural components, aims to achieve the "Housing for All by 2022" mission. Launched in 2015, PMAY–Urban focuses on providing affordable housing to the urban poor, addressing the housing shortage across India’s cities and towns.

Objectives

• Construct two crore houses across the nation to address the urban housing shortage.
• Cover all 4,041 statutory towns, with an initial focus on 500 Class I cities to prioritize high-demand areas.

Intended Beneficiaries

• Poor people living below the poverty line (BPL).
• Individuals under Economically Weaker Section (EWS) and Low Income Group (LIG) categories in urban areas.

Key Features

• Ensures house ownership in the name of a woman or jointly with her husband to promote gender equity.
• Provides flexibility to states to choose optimal housing solutions based on local demand.
• Offers a central grant of Rs. one lakh per house, on average, under the slum rehabilitation program.
• Implemented in three phases: Phase-I (April 2015–March 2017) covering 100 cities; Phase-II (April 2017–March 2019) covering 200 additional cities; and Phase-III (April 2019–March 2022) covering all remaining cities.

Smart Cities Mission

The Smart Cities Mission, initially under the Ministry of Urban Development (now MoHUA), seeks to transform urban India by developing 100 smart cities that drive economic growth, sustainability, and inclusivity. Launched in 2015, it emphasizes efficient urban governance and infrastructure development.

Objectives

• Drive economic growth through urban development and innovation.
• Create sites for production, efficiency, consumption, and sustainable living, including effective waste management.
• Reduce regional disparities through balanced urban development.
• Promote mixed land use in area-based developments to enhance urban functionality.
• Ensure housing and inclusiveness for diverse urban populations.

Intended Beneficiaries

• Urban population seeking improved civic amenities and participatory governance.
• Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) managing city infrastructure.
• Urban governance systems benefiting from streamlined processes.
• Urban planners engaged in holistic city planning.

Key Features

• Plans to select 20 cities initially, followed by 40 cities each in the next two years, through a ‘City Challenge Competition’ with central funding of Rs. 100 crore per city annually for five years.
• Implemented via Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) with 50:50 equity between states/UTs and ULBs.
• Focuses on area-based development to create replicable and scalable smart city models.
• Provides basic services like adequate water supply, assured electricity, and sanitation, including solid waste management.
• Tailors cities to specific needs, e.g., DMIC cities for employment, GIFT City for financial services, Kochi Smart City for IT.
• Promotes sustainability through renewable energy and efficient transportation, e.g., Janmarg in Ahmedabad.
• Encourages participatory approaches, such as Maza Swapna in Pune.
• Leverages Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) for expertise and efficiency.
• Improves urban governance through multi-channel citizen services (e-governance, m-governance, common service centers) and integrated asset management.
• Reduces vulnerability via climate change action plans and adaptation strategies.

Recent Developments: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and Urban Policy (2017–2025)

The urban development landscape in India has evolved significantly since 2017, with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) leading transformative policies and schemes. This section updates the earlier initiatives, highlighting progress, new programs, and their alignment with national and global goals as of May 2025.

Transition to Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA) merged into the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) on July 6, 2017, expanding its scope to include urban development, transport, and sanitation alongside housing and poverty alleviation.
• MoHUA oversees flagship schemes like PMAY–Urban, Smart Cities Mission, AMRUT, SBM–Urban, and DAY-NULM, aligning with India’s Vision 2047 to become a developed nation by 2047.
• India’s urbanization rate reached 36% in 2025, contributing 65% to GDP, with MoHUA driving sustainable urban planning under SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities).

Updates to Key Schemes

• Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana–Urban (PMAY-U): Extended beyond 2022, PMAY-U has sanctioned 1.18 crore houses, with 85 lakh completed by 2024 (Economic Survey 2024–25). It includes In-Situ Slum Redevelopment (ISSR), Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP), Beneficiary-Led Construction (BLC), and Credit-Linked Subsidy Scheme (CLSS). Central assistance of Rs. 2 lakh crore has been disbursed, targeting EWS, LIG, and MIG categories.
• Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana–National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM): Linked 1 crore women to SHGs by 2024, with Rs. 10,000 crore in credit disbursed. PM SVANidhi (launched 2020) provided microcredit to 50 lakh street vendors, disbursing Rs. 10,000 crore. Skill training reached 20 lakh urban poor, emphasizing digital and green jobs.
• Smart Cities Mission (SCM): Selected 100 cities, completing 8,000 projects (80%) worth Rs. 2 lakh crore by 2024. Smart City 4.0 (2025) integrates AI, IoT, and 5G for urban governance, with 1,200 km of smart roads and enhanced e-governance.
• Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT 2.0): Launched in 2021, it covers 4,500 towns, achieving 100% water tap connections by 2024. Rs. 2.87 lakh crore is allocated for water supply, sewerage, and green spaces, emphasizing circular water economy and PPP models.
• Swachh Bharat Mission–Urban 2.0 (SBM-U 2.0): Launched in 2021, it achieved 100% Open Defecation Free (ODF) status in urban areas by 2024, with 95% waste segregation and processing. Rs. 1.41 lakh crore is allocated for sustainable waste management.

Current Priorities and Global Alignment

• MoHUA integrates urban planning with PM GatiShakti (launched 2021), enhancing connectivity through 1,200 multi-modal projects by 2024.
• Climate resilience aligns with India’s net-zero by 2070 goal, supported by 150 GW renewable energy capacity (2024) and Green Urban Mobility initiatives.
• The National Urban Digital Mission (NUDM), launched in 2021, digitizes services across 4,000 ULBs, leveraging UPI (50% of global transaction volume in 2024).
• Urban poverty reduced to 14.96% (MPI 2023), with 135 million exiting poverty between 2015–21, driven by PMAY-U and DAY-NULM.
• India’s Urban20 (U20) leadership during the G20 presidency (2023) emphasized sustainable urban development, influencing global urban policy.