Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) for the slum dwellers and the urban poor envisages a ‘Slum-free India’ through encouraging States/Union Territories to tackle the problem of slums in a definitive manner. It calls for a multi-pronged approach focusing on: • Bringing existing slums within the formal system and enabling them to avail of the same level of basic amenities as the rest of the town; • Redressing the failures of the formal system that lie behind the creation of slums; • Tackling the shortages of urban land and housing that keep shelter out of reach of the urban poor and force them to resort to extra-legal solutions in a bid to retain their sources of livelihood and employment.