Din over EMS Housing Scheme

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Once again, councillors in the City Corporation proved that they have more lessons to learn on parliamentary decorum. On Friday,  the Council saw yet another show of might and war of words, that have now seem to become the order of the floor. Discussions on the EMS Housing Scheme and the AGaudit report was enough material for the day din, which lacked serious debates or any concern on the mounting debts and pending projects. The Council passed a resolution asking the State Government to have a rethink on the EMS Housing Scheme,  which is supposedly on the verge of a shutdown. It was passed with the support of 53 votes against 35 (from the UDF) after the resolution was put to vote. The BJP also supported the LDF resolution. Works Standing Committee Chairperson V S Padmakumar, in his resolution, asked the UDF government to drop the idea of winding up the EMS Housing Project, which aims to provide the poor with houses. He said that more than three lakh houses have been completed under the project and more than one lakh houses are under construction. However, UDF councillors alleged that the EMS Housing Scheme has been a farce in the Corporation limits. Under the scheme, an amount of Rs 50,000 is given to buy land and Rs one lakh for the construction. The amount is not at all a decent one to build a house in the city, which is one defect of the scheme, they said. LDF councillors said that the Centre and the State Government must revise the norms of the housing scheme so that more beneficiaries could benefit out of it. ''It was by putting in money from the Corporation Own Fund that we completed some of the houses. The norms are the obstacles, Padmakumar said. However, the UDF members were quick to react. ''For five long years, when the LDF was in power in the State, why did you not raise the issue with them and get the money to build the houses? Why should the move to blame it on the present government be tolerated, asked UDF councillor Maheswaran Nair.   The Mayor then read out in the Council that there are a total of 6,984 beneficiaries under the EMS Housing Scheme. In the Corporation limits, so far, 187 houses have been given and land has been acquired for 18 beneficiaries.  Finally, after much heated exchanges between both the sides, it was decided by the Mayor to put the issue to vote.With the BJP deciding to side with the LDF after the latter agreed to slight modifications in the resolution, the UDF lost the polling and the agenda was passed. It was the same din that followed when the audit report was tabled by the Corporation for discussion. The UDF members caused an uproar saying the Mayor had not approved the demand for a special council to discuss the audit report. The Deputy Mayor, who was then chairing the Council meeting, said that the Secretary has asked the Heads of Departments (HODs) to give an explanation on the discrepancies raised in the audit report. The explanations offered by the HODs would be tabled in the Council, he said.