An outlook on Kerala’s Life Mission Programme

A good house surrounded by all the necessary facilities is a distant dream for the underprivileged section of society. But in Kerala, a housing scheme developed by the state government is changing this situation and offering financial assistance and housing options to the people coming from weak economic backgrounds, which will enable them to live in their own house with similar privileges enjoyed by the people with higher income. This revolutionary program is named ‘LIFE MISSION KERALA.’ The acronym LIFE stands for ‘Livelihood Inclusion and Financial Empowerment.

What are the LIFE Mission and its Objectives?

The Life Housing scheme was launched in 2017 by the Kerala Government in association with PMAY (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana) to bring all existing housing programs under a single umbrella. It aims to provide housing to the weaker section of society and create an opportunity for them to progress in life and provide a livelihood for their families. There are some minimum criteria to get into the Life Mission beneficiary list. The main objectives of the Life mission housing scheme are:-

1. To provide housing to approximately 4.3 lakhs of underprivileged people in 5 years across the state of
2. To provide housing to 1.58 lakhs people who are landless out of 4.3 lakhs of people.
3. To construct multi-storied apartment buildings for the total rehabilitation of landless and homeless.
4. To provide financial aid to those who had received assistance from other housing schemes but were unable to complete the construction of the house.
5. To provide services like primary healthcare, special care for the elderly, skill development, and other amenities to improve the livelihood of the beneficiaries.
6. To provide housing for people who have lost their houses in the floods.
7. To provide free housing to fishermen if they have lost their homes due to sea erosion.
8. To build community halls and playing areas for children.

Who is included in the Life Mission Beneficiary List?

It is not for everyone. The Chief Minister of Kerala monitors the life mission housing scheme. Some basic criteria have to be met to be listed as a beneficiary.

1. Having no lands or homes in the state of
2. Unable to complete the construction of the house from other schemes and should not own any other home.
3. Living in a temporary shelter in coastal, plantation, and exotic areas.

 The priority criteria for becoming a beneficiary in Life mission Kerala

The life mission beneficiaries are prioritized based on the following factors.

1. Physically challenged
2. Mental disability
3. Destitute people
4. Transgender
5. People with serious illness
6. Unmarried mothers
7. Unemployed due to serious health issues or met with a serious accident.
8. Widows

Key eligibility criteria to avail benefits of the Life housing scheme

To apply for the Life Mission Kerala Housing program, the following eligibility criteria must be met to become a beneficiary.

1. Homeless families with ration cards.
2. Citizens working as employees in the public sector are not eligible to apply.
3. Only residents of Kerala with valid proof of residence can apply for the Life Mission
4. The annual earnings of the applicant should not exceed ₹3, 00,000.
5. People who don’t own land can apply.
6. Applicants and their family members mentioned in the ration card should be landless.

Documents necessary to apply for Life Mission Kerala

The documents mandatory to apply online or offline to become a beneficiary for life mission housing scheme are:-

1. Ration Card
2. Aadhaar Card
3. Caste certificate
4. Income certificate
5. Medical certificate for physically and mentally challenged
6. Agathi/Ashraya scheme beneficiaries must submit a certificate obtained from CDS
7. Widowed families must submit the death certificate of the deceased head of the family.

Apart from the above documents, a health certificate might also be asked by the Kerala state government if needed.

How to apply for Life Mission Kerala?

There are two ways of applying for becoming a beneficiary in the Life mission housing scheme. One is online, and the other method is offline.

Online method

1. Visit the official website of Life Mission Kerala
2. Click the new registration button
3. Enter your name and mobile number in the respective entry fields
4. Now generate the OTP (One Time Password)
5. Enter the OTP and fill out the details and complete the registration process.
6. After the initial registration is completed, the applicant has to register for the respective scheme.
7. Fill in the details of the application form and upload the necessary documents and save the application.
8. After submitting the form, the Kerala State Authority will verify and approve the beneficiary based on the assessment and subsequent approval. The applicant will be added to the Life Mission Beneficiary List.
9. Any applicant who wishes to see the complete Life Mission Beneficiary List in Phase 1 can log on to the official portal and download the updated list of beneficiaries. Also, the applicant can view the progress report on the ongoing project at any phase by logging in using the same credentials.

Offline method

The application for availing this scheme can also be filled offline. Visit the neighbouring Akshaya Kendra and fill the registration application and submit it.

The process of selection of beneficiaries of Kerala life mission

To choose the deserving applicant as a beneficiary of the life mission house scheme, three main steps are followed:

1. The economic and social caste survey carried out by the central government in 2011 will be used as a reference to identify the beneficiary.

2. The field level officers will visit the identified beneficiaries and verify all the related documents. After the verification process, the recorded information and documents will be handed over to the local self-government institution.

3. The final list of beneficiaries of the life mission will be published at the local or District level Panchayat Office.

Insurance Coverage on houses built using life mission house scheme

The Kerala state government has announced insurance coverage for the houses built using the life mission house scheme. The insurance coverage of ₹4 lakhs is fixed for each house built on the life mission program. For the first three years, the Kerala state government will pay the insurance premium, and after that, the owner has to pay it from his pocket.

The achievements of the Life mission Kerala till now

1. Kerala state government has claimed to have completed 2 lakh homes under the ‘Life mission’ program. The exact number announced by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is 2, 14,262 as of March 2020.

2. Ernakulam district had made it to the top of the list in the ‘Life Mission Kerala’ program in the first phase. The district has recorded a 93.49% progress in its activities during the first phase of the life mission. During this phase, 1075 unfinished houses were identified and out of which 1005 were completed with the financial assistance provided by the life mission housing scheme.

3. Within Kochi Corporation limits, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) and LIFE Mission have collaborated and built 2285 houses as of Feb 2020. Of the total of 8,266 beneficiaries were listed in the LIFE mission project, 4247 houses were being built. Additionally, 1344 recipients are likely to be included as part of the seventh detailed project report that was prepared recently.

4. As per the ‘Life Mission’ progress report on May 2021, the following data is available on the number of houses built in three phases in 14 districts.

Assistance from the Kerala State Government for Life Mission

Under the  project, the Kerala state government will provide financial assistance to homeless families with land for the construction of new houses at ₹35 lakhs for the beneficiaries belonging to the general category and ₹4 lakhs to scheduled caste, fishermen, and plantation workers. For the Scheduled Tribe beneficiaries, the state government of Kerala will assist with the actual cost of the house.

Also, the families with incomplete constructed houses will be provided financial assistance for completion based upon the valuation done by Third Party Technical Agency (TPTA)

The mode of implementation of the Life Mission Housing Scheme

Local self-government institutions, LSGI, will prepare a plan for implementation of the Life mission housing scheme by seeking financial support in the form of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSI), donations from charities, NRI’s, NGO’s, etc.

The involved stakeholders will do the mobilization of these funds. The state government will directly take the loan to support the LSGI.

Overall Budget of the Life Mission Kerala

The total budget for executing the life mission housing scheme in Kerala is estimated to be around ₹22920 crores over a period of 5 years. A part of this amount will be contributed to PMAY rural and urban housing schemes, state department schemes which include Fisheries, ST, SC, Sainik Welfare, Labour, etc. The remaining loan amount will be paid by deducting funds from District and Gram Panchayat obtained through development fund and finance commission grants.

 Latest updates on Life mission Kerala

1. Close to 90,000 fresh applicants for the beneficiary of the Life mission housing scheme were received after the Kerala State Government opened a small window of 5 days to receive new applications. With this development, the total number of applications in the latest phase has surged to 9.2 lakhs.

2. The initial plan in the third phase of the life mission project was to accommodate families without lands in apartment complexes. However, many beneficiaries are showing interest in purchasing land and constructing their houses. This is more economical for the government as the cost of a single flat in a newly built apartment complex will cost around 13 lakhs, while an individual house can be built in 4 lakhs. Also, finding large areas for apartment complexes in a city like Thiruvananthapuram has become a tedious task.

3. As per the latest LIFE MISSION PROGRESS REPORT in May 2021- A total of 2, 62,402 houses are completed under the Life mission project across 14 districts of

Wrapping Up

It is a housing scheme that will enable lakhs of families in Kerala who are homeless and landless to build their own houses and be a part of a growing society and earn a livelihood. The Kerala state government headed by the Chief Minister has made the ‘life mission’ housing program a top priority project and directing their resources to reach their intended target of building houses to 4.3 lakhs of people within 5 years, making the ‘Life Mission,’ one of the top achievements of the state government and also setting a great example for the other states to use the same model for housing development.

FAQ

What is the difference between PMAY (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana) and Life Mission Kerala?

Under the scheme, the Kerala State Government has implemented Life-PMAY as well. But the difference is, the PMAY allocates ₹72000 per house in rural areas, whereas the Kerala State Government under the Life Mission is giving ₹3, 28,000 per house.

Is there a supplementary list planned for the applicants who were not included in the first three phases of the Life Mission housing scheme?

Yes. The Chief Minister of Kerala has announced that a supplementary list of beneficiaries will be made for the applicants who missed out on the first three phases of the Life mission project.

What are the contact details of Life Mission Kerala?

You can reach out at [email protected] or can call any time of the day on the given phone number- 0471 2335524

How are homeless and landless families identified in Kerala other than the SECC survey conducted by the Central Government of 2011?

 Kudumbashree survey will identify the homeless and landless families not listed in the SECC survey conducted by the Central Government in 2011. After the survey, the eligible families will be enrolled in the life mission housing scheme.

Who has the authority to add beneficiaries to the ‘Life mission’ program that are not included in the survey list?

Secretaries of Local Bodies have the authority to add beneficiaries to the ‘life mission’ program that are not included in the survey list.

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