by Mr. Anuj Puri, Chairman & Country Head, JLL India.
Large-scale affordable
housing in cities is the greatest necessity of urban India today. Because
Indian cities have such a severe shortfall on this front, we are seeing the
proliferation of slums and unorganised real estate.
These are detrimental to
planned growth of our cities.
Large-scale urban
developments - the only way to create affordable housing in the required
magnitude in our major cities - are becoming increasingly difficult due to lack
of land parcels, congested transit routes, lack of finance, rising input costs
and regulatory hurdles.
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| Anuj Puri, Chairman & Country Head, JLL India |
If we take a birds-eye
view of the problems plaguing this sector, the vision of Housing for All by
2022 becomes a hazy one at best.
It is vital that these issues are addressed on
a priority basis urgently so that a comprehensive framework can be established
for ensuring the development of affordable housing.
On analysing the
bottlenecks that currently hold affordable housing in India to ransom, it
emerges that any approach towards a workable solution will have to encompass at
least seven important functions. These are:
(1.) Formulate guidelines for identifying right
beneficiaries..!
It is important to
formulate guidelines that will identify the appropriate beneficiaries for
affordable housing projects. This is critical, as the involvement of
speculative investors in such projects defeats to whole purpose.
The National
Population Register and issuance of unique identities via the Unique
Identification Authority of India will become crucial elements in identifying
the right beneficiaries if they are linked with income levels.
2.Innovate on micro-mortgage financing
mechanisms to ensure a larger reach..!
Effective financing
through micro-mortgages by utilising the reach of self-help groups (SHGs) and
other innovative financing mechanisms can ensure that housing finance is available
to large sections of lower income groups (LIG) and economically weaker sections
(EWS).
Flexible payment mechanisms should be put into place, as households in
low-income groups typically have variable income flows.
3. Incentivise developers / promoters to enter affordable
housing segment..!
Urban local bodies can
develop guidelines by giving free sale areas, extra floor space index (FSI) and
other policy-level incentives to real estate developers, thereby attracting
them to develop affordable housing.
Schemes for redevelopment and slum
rehabilitation should be developed with incentives that generate sufficient
returns for the developers, while simultaneously controlling the development
density.
A cost-benefit analysis of regulations should be carried out from a
development perspective to ensure that schemes to facilitate affordable housing
development are actually realistic and feasible.
4. Streamline land records to improve planning
and utilisation of land..!
Adequate availability of
land for housing and infrastructure can be ensured by computerisation of land
records, use of geographical information systems, efficient dispute redressal
mechanisms and implementation of master plans. The central government and some
state governments have already begun work on this front, but there is still a
lack of required pace.
5.Include mass housing zones in city master
plans..!
Additionally, ensure
that these zones are developed within a pre-determined schedule, accounting for
the future requirement of affordable housing. Some cities have already
dedicated zones for development of affordable housing in their master plans.
This needs to be replicated in other cities and towns - with a sharp focus on
development timelines.
6.Deploy well-researched rental housing schemes
in urban areas..!
Authorities like the
Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) have experimented with
rental housing schemes in the past.
However, these have not been very
successful as a proper framework for such schemes was missing.
The most visible
limitations were that development of rental housing took place in far-flung
areas which are not suitable for affordable housing, and the lack viable means
to identify the right end-users.
7.Formulate policies for greater participation
from private sector..!
The private sector can
play a big role in affordable housing, most notably in terms of providing
technological solutions, project financing and delivery. Disruptive innovations
on these fronts, with a specific focus on affordable housing, are the need of
the hour.
We need imaginative, workable solutions to reduce the costs of
construction in the face of rising input costs. As construction costs account
for a significant portion of the selling price of affordable housing units,
savings accrued on the back of such innovations can immensely benefit the
occupier.
It bears mentioning that
none of these solutions will work well in isolation. Given the complexity of
the affordable housing conundrum in India, only a multi-pronged approach with
equal weightage given to each element can hope to break the deadlock.
The
Housing for All by 2022 is indeed a workable vision if a determined and focused
effort based on these solutions is employed - and it will definitely yield the
desired results.
For Media contact
Mr. Arun
Chitnis
Head
– Corporate Communications & Media Relations
JLL
India
Pune
411001.
Tel:
(020) 30930441 Fax: (020) 40196101
Mob:
+91 9657129999
Twitter: @JLLIndia
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