UP woman gets house under PM Awas Yojna, courtesy Facebook post

UP’s rural development department commissioner said he came to know about Geeta Devi’s situation through the Facebook post of a social activist.

A woman, living in extreme poverty in a nondescript village of Meja tehsil in Allahabad, was allotted a home under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna, courtesy a Facebook post through which senior bureaucrats in Lucknow came to know about her ordeal.

She will also get monetary aid under UP State Disaster Relief Fund, said Nagendra Prasad Singh, commissioner, rural development department.

Singh said he came to know about the plight of the woman, identified as Geeta Devi, through a Facebook post of a social worker Rajiv Chandel.

The post had details of how the woman was forced to live along with her children in a shed barely covered with polythene sheets from all the sides, in Itwakalan Gram Panchayat in Meja tehsil, after her house was destroyed in the thunderstorm recently.

“I immediately directed the deputy commissioner (Awas), block development officer and Gram Vikas Adhikari in Allahabad to locate the woman. After talking to several other people in the village the officials came to know that Geeta Devi’s husband Ramnaresh was not mentally fit, therefore she was on her own. She was also taking care of her children without any regular source of income,” said Singh.

The commissioner said Geeta Devi had been allotted home under PM Awas Yojna. She would be getting the Awas in Meja tehsil only.

“Geeta Devi will also be associated with self-help groups to make her social and financial condition strong. She will also be getting benefits of different welfare schemes of UP government,” he added.

Singh said he had directed all the block and rural development officers to identify such families in their respective areas and cover them under different government schemes and aids.

“Chief minister Yogi Adityanath is committed towards development of all the underprivileged people in the society. I am taking regular report from the officials about Geeta Devi to ensure she gets shifted to her new home as early as possible,” he added.

Singh said while he was district magistrate in Noida he used social media platforms like Facebook to connect to a large number of residents. “Through FB, I used to get so many complaints from people. In many cases, we used to keep the identity of complainant confidential. Daily we used to resolve 15-20 complaints coming through FB. Similar, initiative will also be taken in UP soon,” he added.

While for Geeta Devi, it was no less a surprise when a team of senior officials visited her to take stock of situation. “I don’t know from where these officers came to know about me but now I can take good care of my children in my new home soon,” she added.