PMAY (Urban) and Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban): Housing and Sanitation Missions

PMAY (Urban)

• PMAY (Urban) was launched on 25 June 2015.
• Its goal was “Housing for All” in cities. The first target year was 2022.
• It helps eligible families build or buy a home.
• It gives priority to Economically Weaker Sections and low-income groups.
• A follow-on scheme, PMAY-U 2.0, began in September 2024.

The four ways PMAY-U helps

• In-situ slum redevelopment: rebuild a slum where it stands, using the land as a resource.
• Credit-linked subsidy: lower the interest on home loans.
• Affordable housing in partnership: States or private builders construct homes, with central help per unit.
• Beneficiary-led construction: money for families to build or improve on their own plots.
• Houses are registered in the name of a woman or jointly.
• Credit subsidy income bands: EWS up to ₹3 lakh, LIG ₹3–6 lakh and middle-income groups above that.

Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban)

• SBM (Urban) was launched on 2 October 2014.
• Its aims include ending open defecation and managing solid waste.
• It pushed for individual and community toilets in cities.
• A second phase, SBM-U 2.0, began in October 2021.
• Both missions sit under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

Phase two of sanitation

• SBM-U 2.0 aims at “Garbage Free Cities”.
• It stresses source segregation, scientific processing and legacy waste dumps.
• Cities are graded as ODF, ODF+ and ODF++ based on toilet use and safe disposal of waste.
• ODF++ also asks for safe handling of faecal sludge and sewage.

Subsidy and ranking

• PMAY (Urban) offers a credit-linked subsidy. It lowers the effective interest on a home loan.
• Houses are also built on the beneficiary’s own land, or in partnership projects.
• Swachh Survekshan ranks cities on cleanliness every year.
• Rankings make cities compete for a better score.
• Swachh Survekshan began in 2016. Indore has topped the ranking repeatedly.
• Citizen feedback and field checks both count toward a city’s score.
• Waste-pickers and sanitation workers are part of the plan, but their working conditions remain a concern.

• PMAY has a rural twin. Read PMAY-G.

A pace question

• Critics ask whether construction kept pace with the first targets.
• The 2022 deadline was missed, so the scheme was extended and later followed by PMAY-U 2.0.
• Both missions use measurable, time-bound, ranked targets.

World Toilet Organization

• It is an independent NGO, founded in Singapore in 2001.
• It is not a United Nations agency.
• Its advocacy helped the UN adopt World Toilet Day.
• It also runs the World Toilet Summit and the World Toilet College.
• UPSC asked this in CSP 2024, GS Paper I.

The numbers

• On 23 February 2026, PMAY-U 2.0 sanctions crossed 13.61 lakh houses. A further 2.88 lakh were approved at the 6th committee meeting. Source: PIB, 23 February 2026.
• On 9 August 2026, PMAY-U and PMAY-U 2.0 together crossed 1.25 crore houses sanctioned. Over 1 crore are completed and delivered. Source: PIB, 9 August 2026.
• PIB also reports 1 crore houses allotted to women.
• At the 8th meeting on 6 August 2026, 2.09 lakh more houses were sanctioned. The PMAY-U 2.0 total passed 18.38 lakh.
• Of that total, 14.40 lakh are Beneficiary Led Construction houses.