Address Malaysian-Indian concerns in 10th Malaysia Plan, Govt. urged

March 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Kuala Lumpur, Mar. 20 (ANI): The Malaysian Government should address the grievances of its 1.8 million-strong Indian population in the 10th Malaysia Plan, according to a researcher.

The Star Online quoted Dr Denison Jayasooria, a principal research fellow at the Institute of Ethnic Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, as saying that most government agencies did not seriously look into issues like crime, violence, urban poverty, inadequate infrastructure for Tamil schools and low recruitment and promotion opportunities for Indians.

He added that Indian youngsters must change their mindset so they can cope with the rapid economic development. (ANI)

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15 day Ladakh festival begins

September 3, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Ladakh (Jammu and Kashmir), Sep 3 (ANI): To attract more tourists, a 15 day long festival commenced in the polo ground of Jammu and Kashmir’s Ladakh region on Tuesday.

Union Tourism and Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Minister Kumari Selja, while inaugurating the festival, said that this event would help showcase the rich culture, heritage and lifestyle of Ladakh, as the modern-day tourist is travelling to experience the local culture and heritage and not just for sightseeing.

“Earlier the foreign tourists outnumbered the local tourists, but now even the local domestic tourists have discovered Leh and have outnumbered the foreign tourists. This goes to show that how much our country has to offer, we have so much to offer to each other,” Selja said.

Hoping that Ladakh will soon attract the tourists, Selja said that more proposals like this should be welcomed by the Tourism Ministry to promote Ladakh.

The Tourism Ministry had sanctioned huge amount in the year 2005-07 for development of Ladakh region and a project was also sanctioned for the development of tourist facilities in and around Ladakh.

The colorful Ladakh festival, which emerging as an important event in the tourism calendar of the country, will soon attract the tourists from all over the globe.

“We are trying our best to increase the percentage of tourist inflow in Ladakh every year. We are happy that we have succeeded to a large extent. We hope that more and more tourists come to visit this place in the coming years” said Tourism Minister of State Nasir Ashraf Wani.

Wani added that the tourists there have to act as our brand ambassadors, as we hope that back in their country they will tell their people about the beauty of Ladakh.

“The idea was to extend the tourist season. I am glad that the ministry came up with this idea of starting a festival. After a lapse of twelve years we have now managed to lengthen our tourist season,” said Jammu and Kashmir tourism minister, Nawang Rigzen Jora.

The inaugural event was marked by some spectacular performances of different cultural groups, which were well applauded by the audience. The foreign tourists and some distinguished guests present at the event also joined the mass dance, main attraction of the show.

The Ladakh festival which will last till September 15,2009 has many attractions, which include polo match, music concerts, mask dance, cycle expedition, archery, river rafting and folk songs. (ANI)

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Kumari Selja to leave for Oslo today

August 26, 2009 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Aug 26 (ANI): Union Minister of Tourism and Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Kumari Selja will leave for Oslo, Norway today to attend meeting of the board of governors on the Urban Poor Fund International (UPFI) and road shows to promote India as a preferred tourist destination.

Before returning to New Delhi on August 30, Selja will also attend international workshop on safety and security on slum.

The Ministry of Tourism, in association with the PATA India Chapter and the local PATA Chapter in Scandinavia will organize a series of road shows in Helsinki (Finland), Stockholm (Sweden) and Oslo (Norway) from August 25-28.

The objective of the road shows is to promote India as a preferred tourist destination so as to increase tourism from Scandinavia to India.

The road shows will include presentations on India, meetings with buyer delegates from the Scandinavian countries as well as interaction with the international media.

These road shows provide an effective platform for showcasing the tourism products, facilities and services of the country to a select target audience.

Approximately 25-30 leading travel trade representatives from India, including tour operators, airlines, hoteliers are expected to participate in the road shows.

The countries in Scandinavia are very important source markets for India.

With the introduction of Finnair services between India and Finland,tourist arrivals from this region has started showing steady growth.

The Ministry of Tourism has therefore decided to capitalize this trend, by making itself visible in the region.

The proposed road shows with PATA will leverage PATA’s reach in the region, as also the positive impact of the PATA Travel Mart 2008 hosted by India in Hyderabad.

During the road shows, the Ministry of Tourism would also be projecting the investment opportunities available in tourism sector in India. There is 100 per cent FDI allowed in the hotel sector and this would be conveyed to industry leaders in these three countries.

The development in the fields of medical and wellness tourism in the country will also be showcased to professionals and tour operators specializing in the medical and wellness sectors in the region.

Similarly, there is great potential for development of the MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Conventions and Exhibitions) segment in India, but there is little awareness about the potential of this product in the overseas markets.

A major thrust will be given to this sector, during interactions with the conference and incentive organizers and opinion makers.

This is the first time such a large event is being organised in Scandinavia. (ANI)

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Sustainable development needs to be inclusive: Selja

July 8, 2009 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, July 7 (ANI): Union Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Minister Kumari Selja said on Tuesday that sustainable development needs to be inclusive and different from mere economic development of the past, and its benefits must last well into the next generation, and beyond.

Delivering the inaugural address at the launch of Habitat Business Forum in New Delhi, the minister emphasised the role of private sector in contributing towards this cause has to be recognized and promoted on a large scale.

She also discussed the importance of Non-Government Organizations, saying that they can be very effective agent for building public awareness at the local level, for mobilizing community action, and for voicing local concerns.

Selja also highlighted that capital intensity of urban growth creates divide between the rich and the poor raising prices of basic amenities and making these inaccessible to poor.

The minister said it was critical that cities devise institutional framework for themselves that satisfy the requirements of good urban governance.

She said it is essential that urban local government translate national policies and programmes into local action.

Referring to the Rajiv Awas Yojana, Selja said the scheme is an effort to promote a slum free India in five years, adding that the government would extend support to states that are willing to assign property rights to people living in slum areas.

Rajiv Awas Yojna will offer a ray of hope to slum dwellers and other urban poor to access a decent and dignified living environment and an affordable home. (ANI)

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1.5 million houses sanctioned for the poor: Kumari Selja

July 1, 2009 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, July 1 (ANI): Union Minister for Tourism and Housing Kumari Selja on Wednesday said that the Government has sanctioned over 1.5 million houses for the poor people across the country.

Kumari Selja, releasing her ministry’s 100-day agenda, announced that the Government is likely to develop a model legal framework to consider property rights to the urban slum dwellers.

She said that the UPA government is committed to encourage domestic tourism in the country. Aiming at empowering the urban poor with legal rights, UPA government is initiating steps to provide property entitlements to them.

“We will develop a model legal framework for consideration by states and Union Territories for according property rights to slum dwellers,” said the Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Tourism Minister Selja.

There are about 81 million urban poor or slum dwellers in the country, as per the 2004-05 census.

“Ministry will formulate ‘Rajiv Awas Yojana’ for slum dwellers and the urban poor in an effort to promote a slum-free India in five years.

Clarifying that the property rights means access to housing by the slum dwellers, Selja said the scheme would focus on according rights to those living in slums and states would provide basic amenities such as water supply, sewerage, drainage, internal and approach roads, street lighting and social infrastructure facilities.

Now, we are proposing that master plans have to include reservation of land to build houses for the poor and also for their economic activities like street vending, Selja said.

Once the slum dwellers get the ownership right through legal process, they can leverage it for their further betterment, she said.

As per the plan, the property rights model will draw best practices both within and outside the country and be circulated to states to enable them to establish their own legal regulatory frameworks suiting local conditions.

The model legal framework for property rights proposes to include reservation of land for housing and informal sector activities by the urban poor in city and zonal plans.

“It will cover the provision of security of tenure to the urban poor and also making land available for affordable housing, basic amenities and informal sector activities of the poor through the process of urban planning,” Selja said. (ANI)

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Govt to focus on affordable housing, private sector to be involved: Selja

May 30, 2009 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, May 30(ANI): To tackle the country’s serious shortage, estimated at nearly 25 million, the government will now focus on affordable housing by involving the private sector, said Housing and Urban poverty Alleviation Minister Kumari Selja.

With 97 per cent of this shortage in Low Income Group (LIG) and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) of the society, need is for a sustainable, equitable and socially inclusive development plan which will involve and cater to housing to the Weaker Sections.

“Our major focus will be on construction of affordable housing for poor and middle class people across the country by involving the private sector,” she said.

Assuming charge of the ministry for the second time, Selja said that the private sector is also recognising the growing demand for affordable housing.

“Notwithstanding the economic slowdown our efforts will be to put major thrust in the housing sector as our goal is that everybody should have access to affordable housing. We are moving towards that goal,” she added.

Two schemes have been launched in the first quarter of 2009 to encourage states to provide urban land at affordable costs for housing and also to reduce the cost of credit for housing for the poor.

Referring to the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), the flagship programme of the Government which focuses on developing an integrated approach to the basic services for the urban poor, she said equal emphasis would be placed to facilitate the flow of institutional funds for affordable housing.

“Our budget allocation has also been increased from Rs 2500 crore to RS 3300 crore in this fiscal for carrying out the various programmes providing better amenities to people in cities,” she added. (ANI)

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Cabinet approves IBSA MoU on Human Settlements Development

February 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Feb 5 (ANI): The Union Cabinet has accorded ex-post facto approval to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) on Cooperation in the field of Human Settlements Development which has been signed between the IBSA countries on the October 15, 2008 during the 3rd IBSA summit.

The IBSA dialogue has its genesis in the discussions between the Heads of State and Government of the IBSA countries at the G-8 meeting that took place in Evian, France in 2003, and following ongoing trilateral consultations, where the Foreign Ministers of the respective countries met in Brasilia on June 6, 2003 and the launching of the IBSA Dialogue Forum was formalized through the adoption of the “Brasilia Declaration”.

The IBSA Dialogue Forum has regular consultations at Senior Officials level called Focal Point meetings; Ministerial meeting known as Trilateral Joint Commission; and Heads of State or Summit Meeting. It also facilitates interaction amongst academics, business and other members of civil society.

The fourth meeting of the Trilateral Commission of the IBSA Dialogue Forum held in New Delhi on July 4, 2007 recognized the importance of cooperation in the sector of human settlement development and called upon the focal points to consult and provide a concrete proposal for co-operation in the field of human settlement development.

Both the 1st and 2nd Working Group meetings were held in South Africa. In the 2nd Working Group meeting held at Somerset West, South Africa in May, 2008 in conjunction with the 5th IBSA Trilateral Commission Meeting and the 12th Focal Point Meeting, India had circulated a draft trilateral MOU. The draft was considered by the Working Group and it was decided that Brazil and South Africa will communicate their comments or suggestions to India in due course.

The 3rd meeting of the IBSA Working Group of Human Settlement Development ( WGHS) was hosted by Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation in New Delhi, India on September 8 to 9, 2008. Delegations from India, Brazil and South Africa participated in the deliberations.

The MoU is reflective of the common desire of IBSA countries to work in tandem towards the objective of providing housing and basic services to the urban poor. As the key actors in their respective regions, all three countries have an active and important role in achieving this goal.

Closer co-operation under IBSA would lead to greater articulation of developing housing and human settlement strategies relevant to developing countries. This would also assist in engaging with International role players to garner support both financial and political towards achieving the MDG identified goal for human settlement development by the three countries. (ANI)

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2010 to be declared “Year for Affordable Housing”

January 21, 2009 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Jan.21 (ANI): The National Conference of Ministers of Housing, Urban Development and Municipal Administration has recommended that 2010 be declared as the “Year for Affordable Housing”.

The other eleven recommendations of the conference, which met on Tuesday are:

1.State specific policy focusing on Affordable Housing with supporting action plans for augmenting supply of land at affordable prices should be developed.

2.States to draw up the road map and a vision for ‘Slum Free City’.

3.Banks to make reservation of at least 1% of their priority sector lending funds for EWS housing

4.Review of existing legal and regulatory framework for acquiring/bringing-in additional lands into the market. Secure land tenure may be extended to families living in slums. Further, Vertical/multi-storeyed construction for in-situ slum re-developments be adopted by persuading the community to avoid long distance relocation

5.Modify state enactments and city level master plans for upward revision of FAR/FSI to accommodate land allocation for EWS and LIG. The investment in infrastructure should be commensurate with the revision of FAR and FSI.

6.Land at institutional rates to be made available for low income housing to cooperative housing societies and employee Welfare organizations to those with a good track record.

7.Private developers ready to undertake construction of affordable housing in partnership or in a JV with the state may be involved.

8.Institutional mechanisms to compile regularly data on housing starts and completions be established.

9.Steps may be taken to create a healthy rental market

10.Easy availability of housing finance at concessional rates

11.Strengthen and enlarge Housing Micro-finance

Kumari Selja, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation inaugurated the conference.

She highlighted that growth of large cities is accompanied by an upsurge in urban poverty where in absence of basic services, secure tenure and formal employment opportunities, settlements of the poor become slums with health and environmental concerns.

Referring to the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), she said it is addressing the issue of facilitation of basic services for such settlement along with housing.

The Interest Subsidy Scheme for Housing the Urban Poor (ISHUP) is also likely to address the issue of availability of institutional finance to these people,she added.

She requested the State Governments to supplement the efforts of Union Government in creation of additional housing stock by increasing supply of serviced land and new houses by direct intervention through State Housing Boards, Development Authorities, Cooperative Sector etc.

State Government should also provide a one time incentive in the form of relaxation of Floor Area Ratio (FAR) /Floor Space Index (FSI) norms through appropriate spatial (regulatory) incentives. This would lead to softening of land prices and induce downward trend in house prices, Selja opined.

The National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy, 2007 (NUHHP) adopts the goal of affordable housing for all, and seeks to promote multiple schemes and private-public partnerships in order to achieve it.

It is estimated that 26.53 million houses would be required by the end of the 11th Plan. (ANI)

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