Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday handed over 39365 more houses to homeless people ahead of the holy Eid-ul-Fitr as part of her government's aim to ensure housing for all landless persons.

The premier handed over the houses in the fourth phase of Ashrayan-2 project through a programme virtually from her official Ganabhaban residence in the capital.

Earlier, 63,999 houses were distributed to the 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 39365 more houses, its total number stood at 2,15,827 under the Ashrayan-2 project.

The prime minister also declared seven districts and 159 upazilas as homeless and landless free areas, raising the total number of homeless-landless free districts to nine and upazilas to 211.

Earlier, she declared Panchagarh and Magura as homeless-landless free districts.

PM's Principal Secretary Mohammad Tofazzel Hossain Miah moderated the function.

A video-documentary on the changed life style of the house recipients was screened at the function.

Under the project, the landless and homeless people get good quality tin-shed semi-pucca houses on two decimals of land.

The premier, as well, exchanged views with the beneficiaries of Nayapara Ashrayan project under Sreepur upazila in Gazipur district, Noagaon Ashrayan project under Gowainghat upazila in Sylhet and Uttarpar Ashrayan project under Banaripara in Barishal.

The ownership of land is given to both husband and wife and land registration and mutation are also given after their names.

The government is not only building houses of 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.

Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman introduced the rehabilitation programme for homeless people in 1972.

Following the footprints 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 7,71,301 families have been rehabilitated so far since 1997. The number of rehabilitated people is 38,56,505 (estimated as five persons in a family).

Ashrayan Project of the PMO has already rehabilitated 5,54,597 families directly while 2,16,704 families were rehabilitated under different programmes of concerned government offices, including Land Ministry and Disaster Management and Relief Ministry.