Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday morning handed over 39,365 houses to homeless people ahead of the holy Eid-ul-Fitr as part of the government's aim to ensure housing for all landless persons.
The premier handed over the houses in the fourth phase of the Ashrayan-2 project through a program virtually from her official residence, Ganabhaban.
Earlier, 63,999 houses were distributed to landless and homeless people in the first phase, 53,330 in the second phase and 59,133 in the third phase.
With the distribution of 39,365 more houses, the total number stands at 215,827 under the Ashrayan-2 project.
The prime minister also declared seven districts and 159 upazilas homeless- and landless-free, raising the total number of such districts to nine and upazilas to 211.
Earlier, she declared Panchagarh and Magura as homeless- and landless-free districts.
PM's Principal Secretary Mohammad Tofazzel Hossain Miah moderated the function.
A video documentary on the changed lifestyle of the house recipients was screened at the function.
Under the project, landless and homeless people get tin-shed semi-pucca houses on two decimals of land.
The premier also exchanged views with the beneficiaries of the Nayapara Ashrayan project under Sreepur upazila in Gazipur, Noagaon Ashrayan project under Gowainghat upazila in Sylhet and Uttarpar Ashrayan project under Banaripara in Barisal.
The ownership of land is given to both husband and wife, and land registration and mutation are also given in their names.
The government is not only building houses for the project on khas land, rather lands are being bought from the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust to build houses.
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman introduced the rehabilitation program for homeless people in 1972.
Following in the footsteps of Bangabandhu, her daughter Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina took the initiative to provide ownership of houses and lands to homeless and landless people through the Ashrayan Project in 1997.
Under the Ashrayan project, a total of 771,301 families have been rehabilitated so far since 1997. The number of rehabilitated people is 3,856,505 (estimated as five persons in a family).
The Ashrayan project of the PMO has already rehabilitated 554,597 families directly while 216,704 families have been rehabilitated under different programs of government offices concerned, including the land ministry and the disaster management and relief ministry.