Union housing minister Hardeep Singh Puri. (PTI)

NEW DELHI: The Centre on Wednesday claimed that only PM Awas Yojna in urban areas created about 61.49 lakh jobs between 2015 and 2019 amid the debate over whether the Narendra Modi government has generated the employment, which it had promised in the election manifesto.

According to a study carried out for housing ministry, the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy has estimated that while 18.92 lakh direct jobs would have been created due to massive push for building houses under the government’s flagship scheme, another 42.57 lakh jobs would have been created through indirect effects.

Releasing the report, Union housing minister Hardeep Singh Puri said the findings show how the increased economic activities has created more employment opportunities.

He added this will increase further as more and more houses are built across the country. The Centre has approved about 79 lakh houses since the PMAY was launched and work has started in nearly 40 lakh houses.

The report also said that the increased pace of house construction has multiplier effect on the allied industries such as cement, steel and other construction materials.

Last year, the government had released a report estimating that the rural housing scheme has generated over 52 crore person days of employment in two years, emerging a key source of subsistence for unskilled and skilled labourers in the countryside. This study was also done by the same institute for rural development ministry.

