Chandigarh: The beneficiaries of the flagship 'Housing for all' scheme have been exempted from paying any tax on the houses, Punjab Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu said today. 

'Housing for all' scheme aims to provide housing for homeless people in the cities. "The state government has exempted beneficiaries of the flagship scheme from paying any tax on the houses," said state's Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu.  

Under the scheme, 4.73 lakh people have applied for the houses till now, the minster informed. He said to check the eligibility of all those who applied for it, the state government is verifying their antecedents.  

Also, for the cities or towns falling under the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), the minister said lists regarding the number of homeless people is being finalized. "The list of eligible beneficiaries will be decided by the month of March this year," he said.  

Adding to it, the minster said that all the homeless families belonging to the SC or OBC category will be provided the houses free of cost.  

"Apart from this, those families living in the slums on the government land would also be given houses for free," he said.  

According to Sidhu, for the urbanites of general category -- belonging to low income group -- financial assistance worth Rs 1.50 lakh would be provided to them. 

"The department has so far sent demand of Rs 38 crore for 56 cities or towns in this regard," Sidhu informed. PTI