Bhubaneswar, Jul 25 (IANS): The central government has sanctioned 7,465 additional houses for the vulnerable tribal groups in Odisha's impoverished Nuapada and Rayagada districts, official sources said Thursday.
In a letter to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh said his ministry had released Rs.20.99 crore over and above the Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) allocation as the first instalment for constructing the houses.
In his July 24 letter, a copy of which is in the possession of IANS, the minister said, "The total allocation under the Indira Awaas Yojana for Odisha in 2013-14 is 128,057 houses..."
Ramesh, in his letter, said the state government had July 11 requested for the additional houses for Chakotia Bhunjia and Dongria Kandha families in the Sunabeda reserve forest area of Nuapada district and Bissamcuttack, Kalayansinghpur and Muniguda blocks of Rayagada district.