Lahore: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday approved the launch of the “Apna Ghar, Mehfooz Ghar” (My Home, Safe Home) programme to improve housing safety across the province by providing interest-free loans for repairing structurally unsafe homes and expanding residential buildings.
The initiative will be introduced under the provincial government’s existing “Apni Chhat, Apna Ghar” housing programme. The decision was taken during a special meeting chaired by the chief minister, which also approved expanding the flagship scheme through two new loan categories.
Under the programme, eligible families will receive interest-free loans of PKR 500,000 to repair weak roofs and structurally unsafe houses. In addition, interest-free loans of PKR 1 million will be offered in easy instalments for constructing an additional storey or floor.
The meeting reviewed progress on the “Apni Chhat, Apna Ghar” and “Apni Zameen, Apna Ghar” programmes. Officials informed the chief minister that interest-free housing loans had been approved for more than 180,000 homeless families, with funds already disbursed to 170,000 beneficiaries. The Punjab government has so far released PKR 217.8 billion under the programme, while nearly 27,500 houses are in the final stages of completion.
According to the briefing, 134,343 houses have been completed across Punjab under the housing initiative, while more than 1.278 million applications have been received from families seeking assistance.
Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz directed authorities to release the second instalment of housing loans within the next three days, stating that effective governance is demonstrated through practical action during challenging times.
The meeting also formally approved the PKR 1 million loan category for constructing an additional floor and endorsed the PKR 500,000 loan category for repairing damaged and unsafe roofs.
Officials further informed the meeting that 2,000 residential plots had been distributed across 23 districts under the “Apni Zameen, Apna Ghar” programme. A report on rehabilitation and development work in these areas was also presented.
The chief minister directed authorities to further simplify the housing loan application process and ensure that families who had received free government plots are also facilitated with construction loans. She said the Punjab government would support low-income families in making unsafe and dilapidated homes secure, while directing that no additional financial burden be imposed on beneficiaries and that the existing eligibility criteria and loan procedures remain unchanged.
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