The government has decided to rehabilitate 2.80 lakh homeless families by 2019 across the country through the Cluster Village, Housing Fund and Ashrayan project.According to an official document, out of the total 2.80 lakh homeless families, the Cluster Village would rehabilitate 50,000 of them, Housing Fund 20,000 and the Ashrayan project would bring 2.10 lakh families under the housing facility by 2019.“Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s special initiative to rehabilitate homeless people is meant for making them income generating forces aimed at alleviating poverty in the country,” Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister’s Office Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury told BSS today.He said the government would also provide support to the rehabilitated families for making them self-reliant, adding, “The Ashrayan-2 project would build houses for 2.10 lakh poor families.”Dr Naser said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina declared “Housing for all” programme to bring all homeless families under the housing facility. In this regard, the Ashrayan-2 project under the Prime Minister`s Office is working to improve the living of landless and homeless families by focusing on human resource development.According to project details, the government would build houses for all homeless families and make them income generating forces across the country within the 2019.A proposal of the Ashrayan project has been sent to the Planning Commission for extending its tenure up to June 2019.The Ashrayan-2 project already rehabilitated 1,43,692 landless and homeless families and provided 14 days’ training to at least two members of the targeted families for making them income generating forces from 1997 to June 2016, it said.One of each trained family members would be given a one-time loan of Taka 10,000 for launching their income generation activities. The Ashrayan-2 Project rehabilitated 37,779 out of 50,000 homeless and landless families from July 2010 to June 2016 and rest of the families would be brought under the housing facility, the details mentioned.Earlier, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina launched the Ashrayan project during her 1996-2001 tenure aimed at bringing all homeless and landless people under home facility and rehabilitated 47,210 homeless families from 1997 to 2002, while the Ashrayan project (Phase-2) rehabilitated 58,703 families in 2010.Besides, the government is providing training to ultra poor people, giving interest-free loans and electricity connection to infuse dynamism into the rural life for furthering the socio-economic development as a part of the poverty alleviation campaign.Source: BSS