The Naveen Patnaik government on Friday decided to provide land to 2.4 lakh slum households, benefiting around 9.7 lakh people across five municipal corporations of the state.

The state government has also decided to allot land for development and upgradation of slums. An ordinance to this effect was approved on Friday in the state cabinet meeting chaired by the chief minister.

“The municipal corporations will have the flexibility of granting the land rights to the slum households in situ over land up to 45 sq mt. If the slum households belong to the EWS (economic weaker section) category, land rights are proposed to be granted free of cost over an area of 30 sq mt. If the slum household is in occupation of a patch of land, which is less than 30 sq mt and vacant government land is available adjacent to the dwelling unit, it is proposed that land right shall be granted over a land as nearly as 30 sq mt by amalgamating the land available for the purpose,” said a media release of the state government.

The release stated: “Promulgation of the proposed ordinance will not only ensure security of tenure but also make the households eligible for availing benefits under housing schemes, benefiting approximately 2,40,000 households covering about 9,70,000 population in five municipal corporation areas. The ordinance is a reassurance to the slum dwellers on their ‘right to the city’ and confirmation that “the government values its people more than it values its land’”.

The government has given the land under the Odisha Land Rights to Slum Dwellers Act, 2017. The other decisions of the state cabinet include implementation of Seventh Pay Commission’s recommendation for teachers, which would benefit around 46,000 teachers.

Besides, the government would continue to support educational institutions, particularly high schools, upper primary schools, Sanskrit tols, madrasas and non-government colleges, through its grant-in aid policy.

“The state will bear a financial burden of around Rs 292 crore towards implementing the grant-in-aid policy,” said chief secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra while briefing reporters about the cabinet decision.