At a time when India's real estate sector is reeling under depressed market conditions, industry body Assocham has suggested that the government and realty players should join hands to meet the demand for 47.43 million low-cost houses by 2012 in rural areas.
There is huge demand for low-cost houses in rural areas, which needs to be fulfilled. The Indira Awaas Yojana Scheme, (IAY) under the umbrella of ‘Bharta Nirman’ programme, should be restructured, Assocham President Sajjan Jindal said.
"There is a strong case for private sector participation to bring in right technology for such types of houses and ensure fast completion of the projects," he added.
Citing the data of the Ministry of Rural Development, the chamber said since the inception of the scheme, 171 lakh houses have been constructed with an expenditure of Rs 1,89,898.56 crore. However, the desired results under the scheme have not been fully achieved as there are problems like availability of land, clearances by the forest department, delay in release of funds and lack of basic amenities in the constructed houses; as a result, most of the houses remain abandoned, it said.
Among the states which face the maximum shortage of houses in rural areas are Bihar (4.21 million), Assam (2.24 million), Andhra Pradesh (1.35 million) and Uttar Pradesh (1.32 million), the study said.
The Indira Awaas Yojana scheme is a cash subsidy-based programme, under which rural families below the poverty line get financial assistance to construct dwelling units.
The Central and state governments fund the scheme in the ratio 75:25. About 60 per cent of the funds are provided under the scheme is meant for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, it said.
While the government was able to achieve 99 per cent of the construction target in the hinterland between 2000 and 2007, the achievement rate fell to 51 per cent in 2007-08, Assocham said. It said the gram panchayats do not select the beneficiaries in a fair manner and the practice lacks transparency at ground level.
