Cities are engines of growth and innovation. Urban Indian now form one third of population and they produce more than three fifth of GDP.  Housing is an important sector for the Indian economy as it has linkages with about 269 other industries. Development of the housing sector has a direct impact on employment generation, growth of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and consumption pattern in the economy. The public housing programme in the country started with the rehabilitation of refugees immediately after the independence and since then, it has been a major focus area of the government as an instrument of poverty alleviation.

• It has been increasingly realized across the globe that sustainable housing and urban development have a crucial bearing on the quality of life and social and economic well being of the people.
• Housing has been placed at the centre of New Urban Agenda of Habitat III, 2016.
• Sustainable and disaster resilient housing has been recognized as an important lever in meeting the commitments towards Sendai Framework 2015 and Paris Agreement on Climate Change 2016. Goal of Sustainable Development Goal 11 is to make human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
• In line with its commitment to the SDGs, India has launched the Mission of Housing for All by 2022.

Challenges:

• According to the data from Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, there is a shortage of 18.78 million housing units, of these the Economic and weaker section (EWS) alone accounts 56.2 percent.
• It is evident that there is a mismatch in the demand and supply in the housing market, as the Census of India shows that 11.07 million houses were vacant in 2011 in Urban India. Housing Surplus is in the higher income groups while 95% of the deficit is in the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) and Lower Income Group (LIG) categories.
• According to the estimates, India’s urban population is expected to grow to 814 million by 2020. This will pose a major challenge in providing housing facilities and basic amenities to the population. This may result in growth of homeless population.
• Scarcity of developed and encumbrance free land, increased cost of construction, lack of private sector participation, absence of viable rental market, inaccessibility to home loans by poor are some of the challenges which need to be addressed for development of the affordable housing market.
• The technological Innovations in low cost building material and construction practices lack popular acceptance in the market.
• Certain regulatory constraints such as long and cumbersome approval process, environment clearance, lack of clarity in building by-laws and implementation of the master plan.
• The housing shortage for 2012-17 is estimated to be 18.78 million units in rural areas.

Government initiatives:

• The government of India has since Independence, adopted a number of policies and programmes like Low Income Group Housing Scheme (1956), Slum Improvement Clearance Scheme (1956-1972), Environmental Improvement of Urban Slums (1972), National Slum Development Programme (1966), Scheme for Housing and Shelter Up gradation (1989-1997)Night Shelter (1988-89), Valmiki Ambedkar Awas Yojana (2001) to house the poor. Integrated Subsidies Housing Scheme (1952) for industrial workers and economically weaker sections.
• The role of government has switched from that of a provider of housing units to more of a market facilitator.
• Recent government initiatives include include JnNURM(Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission), Rajiv AwasYojana(RAY), Rajiv RinnYojana(RRY) and the latest Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U).

Housing for All Mission:

The central government has identified 305 cities and towns under the Housing for All Mission, also called the Pradyhan Mantri Awas Yojana, which targets to build 2 crore homes for urban poor by the year 2022.

Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana- Urban

 PMAY-U was launched in 2015 to provide housing for all by 2022. The scheme provides central assistance to Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) and other implementing agencies through States/UTs. The programme has 4 verticals

• Credit Link Subsidy Scheme (CLSS)
• In-situ rehabilitation of existing slum dwellers using land as a resource through private participation.
• Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP)
• Subsidy for beneficiary led individual house construction/enhancement.

In the spirit of cooperative federalism, the mission has provided flexibility to states for choosing the best option amongst the four verticals of the mission to meet the demand of housing in their states. It has introduced a built in flexibility, demand driven approach and comprehensive Housing for All Plan of Action for all of the ULBs.

The government has also taken various policy measures to address the challenges of affordable housing:

• First National Policy for housing was announced in 1988. The policy was revised in 1994.
• New Housing and Habitat policy was announced in 1998. This policy envisaged some major landmark initiatives such as repeal of Urban Land Ceiling and Regulation Act.
• The government has also drafted a National Public Private Partnership Policy for implementing a large number of projects across diverse segments through private sector.
• Tenancy Act has been drafted to catalyze the nascent market for formal rental accommodations.
• Various measures have been taken by the government to make affordable housing sector as an attractive investment destination. Real Estate Regulation Act (RERA) was passed, FDI Rules liberalized, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) were introduced and GST was rolled out.
  • RERA regulates the organized real estate sector with fair, transparent transactions that boost the confidence of investors in addition to protecting the interest of consumers.
  • GST helps in improving supply chain efficiency.
• As a critical supply side incentive to bring in private investment in affordable housing sector.
• Budget 2016-17 and 2017-18 provided the platform for creating an enabling environment with fiscal concessions such as direct tax benefits under Section 80-IBA of the Income Tax Act, relaxation in FDI and ECB proposals and standardized usage of carpet area definition.
• Significant mortgage reforms by way of new broad-based Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme (CLSS) under PMAY-U (Urban) have been introduced.
• Marginal Cost of Fund based Lending Rate (MCLR) for speedy transmission of Reserve Bank of India rate cuts to home buyers.
• The government has accorded ‘Infrastructure Status’ to affordable housing, which will make project loans affordable and reduce prices of homes for buyers. It will provide cheaper sources of finance to developers and also open up additional avenues for developers to raise funds.

Convergence of Missions:

The integration of urban schemes help the cities to upgrade themselves faster in terms of meeting the housing demand equipped with necessary infrastructure, both social and physical.

• Smart Cities Mission (SCM) is a flagship programme of the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD). Many of the smart city proposals have included housing under area-based development and have proposed convergence with PMAY-U.
• Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Transformation (AMRUT) could be converged with PMAY to develop necessary infrastructure.
• Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM – Urban) aims to eliminate open defecation and eradicate manual scavenging among many other objectives. PMAY with SBM ensures provision of basic facilities related to sanitation.
• The Scheme for Shelter for Urban Homeless under Deen Dayal Upadhyay Anthyodaya Yojana – National Urban Livelihood Mission (DAY-NULM) aims to cater to the needs of especially vulnerable segments of the urban homeless.
• National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) can converge with PMAY which would lead to overall development.
• The housing scheme may also be linked with MNREGA and sanitation programme so that the houses will have a better quality drainage services.

Conclusion

• Capacity building for all players at different levels is an important pre-requisite to achieve housing for all by 2022.
• States have an important role to play as ‘housing and urban development’ is a state subject. States must prepare a comprehensive housing plan articulating the institutional and legal structures for enabling ecosystem to achieve this ambitious task.
• Innovation in the housing sector need focused attention, where practices of low cost housing and rapid paced construction technology can be incorporated.