Interview: Want to improve infra; make APTIDCO houses livable for underprivileged: Chairman Ajay Kumar

Vijayawada: Newly appointed chairman of AP Township and Infrastructure Development Corporation (APTIDCO) Ajay Kumar Vemulapati pitched for transforming the housing units for the underprivileged sections in the state.

“I intend to improve the infrastructure and transform the AP TIDCO houses and make them livable for the underprivileged sections in the state. Soon, a whitepaper will be released on the present status of the housing units,” said Ajay Kumar Vemulapati after assuming the charge as the chairman of APTIDCO.

Ajay Kumar Vemulapati is the Chairman of the Conflict Management Committee of the Jana Sena Party (JSP) and also the official spokesperson of JSP for national media.

A month ago, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu filled up all the posts for chairpersons of 20 corporations. Among them, 16 positions have been allocated to TDP, while Jana Sena secured three corporations, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received one corporation. Ajay Kumar was one among them from the Jana Sena nominated as chairman for the AP TIDCO.

In a conversation with Coreena Suares and Sistla Dakshina Murthy, Ajay Kumar spoke about his plans to transform the TIDCO housing units livable in the state.

Excerpts of the interview

NM: What are the roles and responsibilities of AP TIDCO? Can you please elaborate on the scheme?

Ajay Kumar: The Corporation’s name APTIDCO might be a little misleading when it says township planning; many people assume that it deals with the entire town and regular municipal works. It's a special purpose vehicle (SPV), which was constituted in 2016 by then chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu. The intention is to build good quality houses for the economically weaker sections (EWS).

The APTIDCO also involves multiple agencies like Prime Minister Awas Yojana (PMAY), the State Government, and the corpus of the Corporation, beneficiaries, contractors, and banks that lend money to the beneficiaries.

Briefing about the original scheme, Ajay Kumar said that the TDP Government in 2016 thought of not only providing housing to the EWS but also introducing them to the concept of a gated community. The government then built housing units on a large scale under the APTIDCO.

NM: Have you inspected any TIDCO housing complex in the state after being appointed as the chairman?What is the support given by multiple agencies to the beneficiaries?

Ajay Kumar: I inspected the biggest TIDCO housing society in Allipuram in Nellore Rural constituency. Over 11,000 housing units were constructed on 110 acres which were equipped with sewage treatment plants, water supply, public gardens, open gyms, community halls, schools and shopping malls.

The entire thing is self-content, like a gated community concept of living. Three types of houses were envisaged for the EWS in the TIDCO housing scheme such as 1 BHK (330 sq.ft), 1.5 BHK (360 sq.ft), and 2 BHK (450 sq.ft).

Around Rs 1.50 lakh would be given to the beneficiary from PMAY, another Rs 1.50 lakh from the State Government, and Rs 90,000 from the TIDCO, which means the entire amount is Rs 3.90 lakh.

Originally, the scheme guidelines were a 1 BHK recipient would pay Rs 25,000, a 1.5 BHK recipient would pay Rs 50,000 and a 2 BHK recipient would pay Rs 1 lakh. Apart from that, the banks would also lend loan beneficiaries not on the collateral basis, for 1 BHK (Rs 3 lakh), 1.5 BHK (Rs 4 lakh), and 2 BHK (Rs 5 lakh) with a tenure of 10 years time period purely on their CIBIL score to pay their loan amount on an easy instalment basis.

NM: What is the current status of the TIDCO housing project in the state? Did there any progress in the scheme during the previous YSRCP regime?

Ajay Kumar: During the TDP regime, the TIDCO housing works progressed at a rapid pace after its establishment in 2016. Big pliers like L&T, Nagarjuna, and many other companies were given work to develop better roads and infrastructure near the housing units across the state.

However, in 2019 after the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) came to power almost 60 percent of the works near housing units were completed and even many agencies continued to expedite the works. But the YSRCP government had stopped clearing the bills to the contractors and the work came to a standstill.

Moreover, the housing units which were completed during the TDP regime were not allocated to the beneficiaries after 2019. I believe politically the thought process of the YSRCP government is why they should give Chandrababu Naidu credit for the TIDCO housing scheme. They came up with an alternative housing scheme of providing 1 cent site to the homeless poor which was not implemented properly and sidelined the TIDCO scheme.

NM: How many TIDCO houses were planned by the TDP regime in 2016? What are the hurdles being faced by the present government to allocate them to the beneficiaries?

Ajay Kumar: In all, the then TDP government planned to build around 9 lakh housing units under the AP TIDCO scheme. Of which, it built around 2.7 lakh housing units, while 2.3 lakh housing units are in various stages of completion. Construction of three lakh more houses has to be started.

Former chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy made modifications to the GO meant for TIDCO housing scheme in which they gave an exemption for the 1 BHK beneficiaries not to pay Rs 25,000 (beneficiary share) and reduced it Rs 500 application fee, for 1.5 BHK beneficiaries they reduced it to Rs 25,000 from Rs 50,000 and for 2 BHK beneficiaries they reduced it to Rs 50,000 from Rs 1 lakh.

The YSRCP government also gave an assurance that it would arrange Rs 3 lakh and suggested the beneficiaries not to avail bank loans, which had put a huge burden on the state’s exchequer. “We are estimating that the state government requires between Rs 4,500-6,000 crore immediately to expedite the ongoing works and handover it to the beneficiaries,” he said.

NM: What are your observations on the ground at the TIDCO housing complexes in the state? What measures are being taken by the government to address them?

Ajay Kumar: For instance, the people residing in Allipuram TIDCO housing units complained about poor infrastructure facilities such as a lack of street lights, irregular water supply, and law and order problems. There are even incidents where the people under the influence of alcohol and ganja attacked them for questioning them.

A representation was submitted to Nellore SP G Krishna Kanth seeking a police outpost at the TIDCO housing complex in Allipuram. Similar complaints were also received from other TIDCO housing units at Pithapuram and other parts of the state.

On the other hand, several beneficiaries who were allocated houses are reluctant to stay at the TIDCO housing units due to a lack of basic infrastructure and they are facing a burden to pay their monthly installments. Apart from that, unidentified miscreants have also stolen the electricity wiring from the locked TIDCO housing units.

Initially, I want to improve the infrastructure in the TIDCO housing units at Allipuram and make it livable in the next six months and develop it as a model for the state. In the coming months, I will visit the housing units across the state to take stock of their present status.

Around 60 percent of the houses are registered in the beneficiary's names but they are reluctant to move due to poor infrastructure. Steps will be taken to improve the infrastructure, if required, with the support from the corporates and make the houses livable.