New Delhi, Nov 29 (IANS): Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said that the construction of over 63 lakh houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) has been sanctioned and "50 lakh more would be sanctioned by mid-2019".

The Minister was speaking at the first national "Concreatech 2018" summit organised here by the Cement Manufacturers Association (CMA).

Under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), he said, the target is to build 1.1 crore homes by 2022. "Out of that, 63 lakh has already been sanction and I am confident that by the middle of 2019, we would have sanctioned the remaining 50 lakh," he said.

"What is most important about this mission is that each home will be built under the highest standards of sustainability. Each home that we construct will be green and resilient," he added.

Puri said that India's cement industry has an important role in the nation building and would help the country in meeting its 2030 Sustainability Development Goals (SDG).

"I would like to underscore that I recognise that cement plays a direct and concrete role in nation building. This will help India in meeting not only the SDG 2025 goals but also 2030 development goals," he said.

Adding to Puri's remarks, Shailendra Chouksey, CMA President and Whole Time Director of JK Lakshmi Cement, said: "India is home to the world's second-largest cement industry in the world and accounts for over 8 per cent of the global installed capacity of 500 million tonnes from 250 large cement plants.

"The country's cement industry is creating a sustainable competitive advantage banking on new technologies, latest quality manufacturing processes, energy savings, low carbon footprint and a green future."