PMAY in J&K's Doda: How Mohammad Akbar's family built their dream home
Synopsis
In Doda's rugged hills, Mohammad Akbar's family story puts a human face on PMAY's scale — 1.25 crore sanctioned houses, ₹8.77 lakh crore committed, and rural allocations that have grown from ₹21 crore to over ₹54,916 crore in a decade. The scheme's quiet reach into India's most difficult terrain is the detail mainstream coverage routinely misses.
Key Takeaways
Mohammad Akbar and his family in Doda, Jammu and Kashmir built a concrete home with assistance under PMAY , replacing a small mud house vulnerable to rain and snow.
As of May 2026 , 1.25 crore houses have been sanctioned under PMAY-U, with a total outlay of ₹8.77 lakh crore .
Over 98.10 lakh houses were completed under PMAY-U between 2015 and 2026 .
Around ₹59,318 crore in interest subsidy has been disbursed under the Credit-Linked Subsidy Scheme .
96% of houses under PMAY-U 2.0 are registered in the name of a woman.
PMAY-G allocations rose from ₹21 crore in 2015–16 to ₹54,916.70 crore in 2026–27.
In Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district, Mohammad Akbar and his wife credit the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) with transforming their lives — enabling them to move from a cramped, weather-battered mud house to a sturdy concrete home they once considered beyond reach. Their story reflects a broader pattern playing out across the country's most underserved communities.
From Mud Walls to Concrete: The Family's Journey
Akbar's wife recalled the formidable challenges the family faced before receiving government assistance. Doda's hilly terrain made construction significantly more expensive and logistically demanding than in the plains, compounding the burden of an irregular household income.
'Building a house looked impossible due to the absence of a regular income. The assistance provided under the scheme enabled us to overcome these hurdles and build a concrete house,' she said.
She described the change in daily living conditions as transformative. 'Now, neither rainwater nor wind enters the house. Earlier, we had to clear heavy snow from the roof, and the house was very small. But now, we are living comfortably. We are deeply grateful for the assistance,' she added.
What the Numbers Show
The Akbar family's experience is one of millions. The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana–Urban (PMAY-U) has delivered over 98.10 lakh completed houses between 2015 and 2026, according to a government statement. As of May 2026, 1.25 crore houses have been sanctioned under the scheme, with a total outlay of ₹8.77 lakh crore.
Notably, around ₹59,318 crore in interest subsidy has been disbursed under the Credit-Linked Subsidy Scheme (CLSS). A striking 96% of houses sanctioned under PMAY-U 2.0 are registered in the name of a woman — a deliberate policy choice aimed at strengthening women's property rights.
Rural Allocations See Sharp Rise
On the rural side, allocations under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana–Gramin (PMAY-G) have scaled dramatically — from ₹21 crore in 2015–16 to ₹54,916.70 crore in 2026–27, according to official figures. This near-exponential increase reflects the Centre's push to extend pucca housing coverage to remote and geographically challenging regions like Doda.
Impact on Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir, with its mountainous geography and a significant rural poor population, has been among the more complex implementation zones for PMAY. The terrain raises construction costs and timelines, making the financial assistance particularly consequential for families who could not otherwise mobilise the capital needed for permanent housing.
Akbar's wife summed up the scheme's significance plainly: 'We are very thankful to the government for providing us with cash assistance. We could never have built a house because we are very poor.'
What Comes Next
With PMAY-U 2.0 underway and rural allocations at an all-time high, the programme's reach is set to expand further. For families in terrain-challenged districts like Doda, the scheme continues to serve as the primary — and often only — pathway to permanent shelter.
Point of View
Remote, with high construction costs and thin income bases — where the gap between sanction and completion is widest. That PMAY-G allocations have grown from ₹21 crore to over ₹54,916 crore signals political commitment, but the terrain-specific implementation challenges in J&K rarely surface in national-level reporting. The 96% women-registration figure under PMAY-U 2.0 is also underreported: it represents one of the largest transfers of property rights to women in independent India's history, with implications that extend well beyond housing.
NationPress
8 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)?
PMAY is a Central government scheme that provides financial assistance to economically weaker sections for constructing or purchasing permanent (pucca) housing. It has two arms — PMAY-Urban (PMAY-U) for cities and PMAY-Gramin (PMAY-G) for rural areas.
How has PMAY helped families in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district?
In Doda, PMAY assistance enabled families like that of Mohammad Akbar to build concrete homes despite hilly terrain and irregular incomes. Without the scheme, Akbar's wife said the family could never have afforded permanent housing.
How many houses have been completed under PMAY-U?
Over 98.10 lakh houses were completed under PMAY-Urban between 2015 and 2026, according to government data. As of May 2026, a total of 1.25 crore houses have been sanctioned under the scheme.
What is the total government outlay under PMAY?
The total outlay under PMAY-U stands at ₹8.77 lakh crore as of May 2026, with ₹59,318 crore disbursed as interest subsidy under the Credit-Linked Subsidy Scheme. PMAY-G allocations have risen to ₹54,916.70 crore for 2026–27.
Why are most PMAY-U 2.0 houses registered in women's names?
Around 96% of houses under PMAY-U 2.0 are registered in the name of a woman, reflecting a deliberate government policy to strengthen women's property rights alongside housing delivery.
