Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday announced an interim approval for one lakh houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin for West Bengal.
Chouhan chaired a high-level review meeting in Kolkata. The meeting was attended by West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, members of the State Cabinet, and senior officials of the Central and State Governments.
Addressing a joint press conference with Adhikari, the Union Minister said due to heavy rainfall, beneficiary surveys could not be completed within the scheduled timeline for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G) for Bengal.
Accordingly, the deadline for the survey has been extended until August 15 to ensure that all eligible families are accurately identified and no deserving beneficiary is left out. Chouhan directed officials to expedite both beneficiary surveys and physical verification simultaneously, while ensuring that house allotments commence immediately upon completion of the verification process so that eligible families receive permanent housing at the earliest.
Highlighting the Centre’s commitment to rural development, Chouhan announced that over ₹8,508 crore has been approved by the Central Government for the State for employment security and rural development under the VB-G RAM G framework.
Together with the State Government’s share, total resources exceeding ₹12,064 crore will be channelled directly through Panchayats up to March 31 to generate employment and support comprehensive rural development.
The Union Minister said the government’s objective is no longer limited to guaranteeing 100 days of employment, but to move towards 125 days of employment, providing greater income security to rural households and enabling additional work opportunities during natural disasters or local emergencies.
Addressing mediapersons, the Chief Minister said, “One lakh houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin have been sanctioned by Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, even before the verification of the list…The deadline for the preparation of the list for the scheme was July 20, but he kept our request and extended it till August 15.”
The Centre has given the State ₹1,000 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana in the first phase for construction of 2,400 km roads, Adhikari added.
The Union Minister announced approval of special projects for the State’s major rice-growing regions to strengthen nutrition, value chains and processing infrastructure. The initiatives will focus on nutritious rice varieties, maize seed production, storage, processing and value addition, enabling farmers to secure higher prices and more stable market.
Published on July 14, 2026
