Affordable housing scheme put on fast track

Font Size

Print

Feedback

Email

Discuss

Related Articles

Realty firms on hiring spree againDLF profit crumbles 77%Realty demand up 15% in Q2‘Property rates to fall 25% in 12-15 months’

New Delhi: home loans can be utilized by the maximum possible people. Moreover, a large scale housing programme also serves as a stimulus for the rest of the economy.

Pankaj Kapoor, CEO, Liases Foras, a Mumbai-based real estate research agency welcomes the move. “Instead of giving FSI of seven to a 7-star hotel, the government should increase FSI in residential category so that the cost of housing becomes cheaper”, he said.

Mumbai has an FSI of 1.33 for residential apartments, where as Delhi has an FSI of 3.5 for smaller plots. Endorsing the initiative of promoting rental housing for lower income groups, Kapoor said that this will ensure that the migration population will have easy access to housing.

Incidentally, the West Bengal Housing Board has successfully implemented the private partnership model to create affordable housing. It employs cost subsidy model where a part of profit from sale of HIG apartments is used to subsidise LIG housing.

“The LIG apartments with an area of 400-550 sq ft costs only Rs 2 lakh,” says Rahul Todi, MD, Sharachi Developers. “The in-situ development is possible and can be made affordable only if the FSI increases,” he said. Implementation of these proposals, especially involving state Housing Boards will be a tall order though. “There should be a uniform policy for the States to follow,” said Prodipta Sen, vice president (marketing and corporate affairs), Alfa G: Corp.