MP to build 20 lakh houses for poor: CM Chouhan

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today said his government will build 20 lakh houses over the next two years for the urban and rural poor.
Each house would be built with Rs 3 lakh in Centre-state subsidy and Rs 2 lakh in state-supported financing, Chouhan said at an event organised by CII here.
He said the transformation of Madhya Pradesh from a BIMARU state to one with seven cities in the National Smart Cities Mission is a result of the state's policies and its implementation.
BIMARU is an acronym for Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh, which were considered to be financially sick ('Bimar' in Hindi) and backward states.

Highlighting MP's achievement since he took over as chief minister 12 years ago, Chouhan said that the state has ensured power and road connectivity.
It has also become an investment destination for renewable energy, a highlight being the solar power plant of 750 MW at Rewa, which created history with the lowest-ever tariff of Rs 2.90 for the first year of operation, he said.

The state has witnessed significant increase in irrigated land from 7.5 lakh hectares in the early 2000s to 40 lakh hectares, and projects are now completed within 1-5 years, as against decades earlier, he claimed.
An extensive river-linking project has ensured water availability even in the remotest areas, Chouhan said.

He also highlighted the state's agricultural policies and said, "Agriculture needs to be a profitable business. A food processing policy has been formulated. These efforts have doubled the agricultural output of MP in the last five years".
On infrastructure, Chouhan stated the state government is connecting every village to roads, power grid, Wi-Fi and drinking water systems.