THE Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has been allocated Rs 85,522.39 crore in the Union Budget, with the PM SVANidhi scheme for street vendors receiving Rs 900 crore, a 57 per cent hike over 2025-26. The first and second phases of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) have received Rs 18,625 crore in the Budget. According to the budgetary document, Rs 6,000 crore has been set aside for PMAY(U), while the second phase of the Modi government’s flagship housing scheme has been given Rs 12,625.05 crore. Under the non-residential category, which includes the construction of non-residential office buildings such as those under the Central Vista project, the Ministry has been allocated Rs 4,000 crore -- a 35.44 per cent rise from Rs 2,952.56 crore in the current financial year. The Ministry is implementing the Government’s Central Vista Redevelopment Project. 

 

 

UNION Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced a major push to strengthen urban growth by focusing on the development of city economic regions (CERs), with a proposed allocation of Rs 5,000 crore per region over five years to implement their plans through a “challenge mode.” The Minister described cities as India’s engines of growth, innovation and opportunity, adding that the new initiative would focus on Tier II and Tier III cities, as well as temple towns, which require modern infrastructure and improved basic amenities.