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Affordable housing for all

NEW DELHI: The National Urban Housing & Habitat Policy 2007, announced on Friday, seeks to promote public-private partnerships for realising the goal of ‘Affordable Housing for All’ with special emphasis on the urban poor.

It also set out an action plan for realising the larger goal by commending to the State governments to have a similar policy. They can also set up high-level monitoring committees for its review and implementation. Briefing media persons after tabling the policy in both Houses of Parliament here, Minister of State for Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation Kumari Selja said that the new policy had been formulated keeping in view the changing socio-economic parameters of the urban area and growing requirement of shelter and related infrastructure.

States are required to develop 15-20 year perspective plans in the form of City Development Plans based on spatial planning.

The Minister further said the policy intended to promote sustainable development of habitat in the country to ensure equitable supply of land, shelter and services at affordable prices to all sections of society.

Given the magnitude of the housing shortage and budgetary constraints of both the Central and State governments, the policy focussed the spotlight on multiple stake-holders namely, the private sector, the cooperative sector, the industrial sector for labour housing and the services/ institutional sector for employee housing.

The Minister said that work on formulating the new policy had started in 1986. It was revised last in 1998. Since then there had been major changes in habitat and human settlement issues.

According to her, the urban housing sector had particularly been facing challenges with regard to affordable shelter, growth of slums and gaps in provision of basic services. The housing shortage in urban areas has been estimated at about 24.7 million units at the end of the 10th Five-Year Plan (2006-07). Ninety-nine per cent of this pertained to the economically weaker sections (EWS) and low income groups (LIG).

The policy notes that provision of housing and basic services for the urban poor has been integrated into the objectives of the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).

The policy lays special emphasis on Scheduled Castes/Tribes/Backward Classes / Minorities and empowerment of women within the ambit of the urban poor.

Favouring a symbiotic development of rural and urban areas in line with the objectives of the 74th Constitution Amendment Act, the policy, emphasises urban planning, increase of supply of land, use of spatial incentives such as additional Floor Area Ratio (FAR), transferable development rights, increased flow of funds, healthy environment, effective solid waste management and use of renewable sources of energy.

While encouraging integrated townships and Special Economic Zones, the policy seeks reservation of 10-15 per cent of land in every new public/private housing projects or 20-25 per cent FAR whichever is greater to be reserved for EWS/LIG Housing through appropriate spatial incentives. States would be advised to develop 10-year perspective plan for housing of EWS/LIG.

While the private sector is to be permitted land assembly within the purview of Master Plans, action plans for urban slum-dwellers and special package for cooperative housing, labour housing and employees housing would be prepared, according primacy to provision of shelter to urban poor at their present location or near their workplace.

Slums will be rehabilitated in situ. Relocation will be considered only in specific cases.

The policy favours promotion of micro finance institutions at the state level to expedite the flow of finances to urban poor, formulation of model municipal laws by the Central Government and preparation of city maps on GIS, aerial survey and ground verification.

Besides encouraging the use of proven cost-effective technology and building materials and balanced ecological development, the policy pitches for development of mass rapid transit system at the sub-regional level.

The Centre will encourage States to develop a “Habitat Infrastructure Action Plan” for all cities with a population of over one lakh with focus on accelerated flow of funds besides providing roadmap for institutional, legal and financial incentives.

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