To ensure all residents of urban areas access to a range of housing options within their affordable limits a workshop on Jharkhand Affordable Housing Policy in Urban Areas was organised on Monday addressing a vital issue of housing policy especially for the economically weaker sections (EWS) and lower income groups (lIG).
“While designing the basic agenda of housing policy in context with the urban area, priority must be given to the EWS and lIG people. As population too is a matter of concern so accordingly plans must be formulated,” said Minister of Urban Development department C P Singh.
The prime objective to organize this workshop is to create a comprehensive and holistic policy framework to address all aspects of housing for the urban poor. Promoting inclusive mixed housing development in all new housing projects both in the public and private domain. Apart this, market led efforts to address the low and informal income market segment was also discussed.
Public private partnerships for affordable housing and slum rehabilitation projects and to ensure availability of land for housing projects in a limited time frame and in regulated manner are also mandatory. To establish a single window approval for housing projects were discussed in the meeting considering it as a core agenda.
Citing further details about the objectives, Chief coordinator and specialist of Housing for All Mission (HFA), Rajan Kumar said, “To ensure minimum relocation of the existing slum dwellers, affordable rental housing for new migrants to prevent development of new slums, to address operational issues that may arise from time to time during implementation of various policies and to support housing projects through supporting cooperative societies are other basic objectives of the workshop.”
Housing for All by 2022 is a national mission for urban housing aimed for urban areas. Nine models under HFA policy in Jharkhand was also highlighted which includes mandatory development of EWS housing, development of affordable housing projects, In-situ slum redevelopment, relocation and rehabilitation, beneficiary led individual housing construction and enhancement, credit linked subsidy under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, rental housing, housing projects by cooperative societies and EWS/lIG housing in the private land.
“Considering this specific housing policy, we can make the master plan accordingly and by the end of the year the department can start working on the policy and will implement it in the fixed time frame,” said Principal Secretary of Urban Development Arun Kumar Singh.
According to the Technical Group Report of Government of India, Jharkhand urban housing shortage is estimated nearly 0.63 million households in 2012. Approximately 96 percent of the shortage constitutes the EWS and lIG of the society.
As many as 70 workers and builders were present on the occasion along with Municipal Corporation officials and housing board officials.