<p>Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday hoped Chandigarh would soon become India's first slum-free city, as he handed over keys to newly-built flats to slum dwellers.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The prime minister arrived here Saturday to hand over documents and keys to 10 flats to beneficiaries in a housing colony in Dhanas area of the union territory under the city's slum rehabilitation scheme.<br /><br />Addressing a gathering, the prime minister said rapid urbanisation was putting pressure on urban centres.<br /><br />"We have over 10 crore people living in slums across the country. Urban centres are under pressure from rapid urbanisation," Manmohan Singh said.<br /><br />Complimenting the Chandigarh administration for constructing the flats, he said the rehabilitation scheme will help make Chandigarh slum-free.<br /><br />Punjab Governor Shivraj Patil, Haryana Governor Jagannath Pahadia, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda accompanied the prime minister to the site.<br /><br />A total of 8,448 flats will be handed over to slum dwellers as part of the scheme.<br />Built under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewable Mission (JNNURM) by the Chandigarh Housing Board, the flats will accommodate over 40,000 people.<br /><br />The union ministry of housing and urban poverty alleviation has approved construction of around 25,000 flats for rehabilitation of the slum-dwellers in Chandigarh.<br /><br />The project is being implemented with central assistance of Rs.436.30 crore.<br />The Chandigarh administration is contributing Rs.585.15 crore towards the balance funding of the project through its budget sanctioned by the union home ministry.<br /><br />Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, is a 114-square-km union territory. It was conceived and built in the 1950s to showcase a modern, resurgent India.<br /></p>
<p>Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday hoped Chandigarh would soon become India's first slum-free city, as he handed over keys to newly-built flats to slum dwellers.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The prime minister arrived here Saturday to hand over documents and keys to 10 flats to beneficiaries in a housing colony in Dhanas area of the union territory under the city's slum rehabilitation scheme.<br /><br />Addressing a gathering, the prime minister said rapid urbanisation was putting pressure on urban centres.<br /><br />"We have over 10 crore people living in slums across the country. Urban centres are under pressure from rapid urbanisation," Manmohan Singh said.<br /><br />Complimenting the Chandigarh administration for constructing the flats, he said the rehabilitation scheme will help make Chandigarh slum-free.<br /><br />Punjab Governor Shivraj Patil, Haryana Governor Jagannath Pahadia, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda accompanied the prime minister to the site.<br /><br />A total of 8,448 flats will be handed over to slum dwellers as part of the scheme.<br />Built under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewable Mission (JNNURM) by the Chandigarh Housing Board, the flats will accommodate over 40,000 people.<br /><br />The union ministry of housing and urban poverty alleviation has approved construction of around 25,000 flats for rehabilitation of the slum-dwellers in Chandigarh.<br /><br />The project is being implemented with central assistance of Rs.436.30 crore.<br />The Chandigarh administration is contributing Rs.585.15 crore towards the balance funding of the project through its budget sanctioned by the union home ministry.<br /><br />Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, is a 114-square-km union territory. It was conceived and built in the 1950s to showcase a modern, resurgent India.<br /></p>