The Indian Express            26.11.2013 

Civic body roots for mandatory affordable housing component

Taking inspiration from USA, Canada, UK, France, Spain, Italy and other countries, the BMC has suggested policies which make it mandatory for developers to provide affordable housing as part of their projects.

The BMC has suggested that "inclusionary housing" as a policy be adopted to augment the need for affordable housing. Pegging the current housing deficit at 10 lakh units, the report suggests a policy wherein developers are required to devote a proportion of total floor space to smaller dwelling units.

The median household income is only Rs 20,000 per month, while the lowest price for even a single bedroom public housing unit starts from Rs 14 lakh onwards, the report says. "It is apparent that nearly half of the population is unable to afford a house even of minimum standards," it states.

Data shows that public sector housing has been providing about 7,000 to 8,000 units annually, while private sector supplies about 15,000 units annually to the Middle Income (MIG) and Higher Income groups (HIG), while three lakh housing units are under various stages of approval under slum rehabilitation schemes.

Citing past experience wherein the smaller dwelling units meant for lower income groups did not reach the intended beneficiaries, the civic administration has suggested inclusive housing.

In the current SRA model, existing slumdwellers are accommodated in less than 50 per cent of the slum area making the rehabilitation extremely dense. At present, 41.85 per cent of the population occupies only 8.18 per cent (33.96 sq km) of the total planning area (415.05 sq km). "Post-rehabilitation, the slum population is expected to reduce drastically, so what is required is to ensure a steady supply of affordable housing over a wide area," the report states.