OREANDA-NEWS. April 19, 2010. Transcript of the beginning of the meeting: Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, Mr Basargin,

I've signed a government resolution adding 10 billion roubles to the Housing and Utilities Reform Fund. These funds are intended to stimulate housing construction and to bolster the programme to relocate people living in dilapidated housing. How do you plan to use these funds? What do you expect will be the result?

Viktor Basargin: Mr Putin, it's universally recognized that the measures financed by the Housing and Utilities Reform Fund are the most effective tool we have for carrying out our anti-recessionary plans in social services and the economy.

The fund already has over 240 billion roubles, of which 180 billion roubles are its own funds, and 60 billion roubles have come from regional budgets.

Considering the size of the fund, 10 billion roubles may not seem like such a big increase, but we believe that this money will allow us to maintain our level of work on major repairs and relocating people living in dilapidated housing.

This will translate into the relocation of over 8,000 people to thousands of new blocks of flats totalling 130,000 square metres of housing. Some 600,000 people are already enjoying the benefits of the relocation programme.

Vladimir Putin: Good.