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Minster for Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation, Kumari Selja has said that housing finance disbursements, have registered a major growth from around Rs. 5000 crore in 1995 - 96 to over Rs. 50,000 crore in 2003-04, thus showing a study growth of over 20%. She was addressing the delegates at the State Housing Ministers Conference here today. “While the contribution of housing finance institutions like HUDCO, banking sector and Co-operative sector in loan disbursement is note worthy, access to finance for the weaker section and low income groups is an area of concern as the major funding under the housing finance sector has gone to the middle and higher income groups except the mandated contribution of HUDCO, she added”
The Minister also observed that with massive urbanization housing problem has assumed alarming proportion, more so for the weaker section, low income groups, disadvantage, marginalized and the poor. “Out of the total housing shortage of 22.4 million units in urban areas, 80% is the need of weaker section and low income group people”, she added. The Minister also said that the critical inputs for housing needs of the weaker section is access to land and infrastructure on affordable terms and housing finance at reasonable rates. Kumari Selja also said that social housing on rental mode for the weaker section and low income groups is an important instrument for housing at affordable prices, and Maharashtra has made commendable efforts in this direction by allocating surplus government/municipal lands to developers to create housing stocks for the poor by using land as resource and cross subsidizing from free sale market component. Referring to the legal reforms needed in housing sectors she underlined the need for the states to carry out the repealing of Urban Land Ceiling Act and State Rent Control Laws within a definitive time frame.
The Minister also said that India has a major market for rental housing as more than 50% of the formal housing is accessed through rental route and hence it is necessary to create appropriate enabling environment for creation of more housing stocks which can be rented out. She emphasized on the need to launch a major rental housing programme through the private sector on lines similar to that in Europe.
Kumari Selja also said that building construction costs increase at a faster rate which is 50% more than inflation and called upon the people to adopt appropriate, cost effective building materials and technology which would lead to affordable houses.
In his key note address Shri Oscar Fernandes, Minister for Programme Implementation and Statistics said that housing sector has tremendous potential to contribute towards employment, generation and growth and urged state governments to take advantage of various central schemes. He said that except HUDCO other financial institutions are not showing much interest in financing dwelling units in rural areas and asked the delegates to look into this issue. Shri Oscar Fernandes emphasized on the need to give more attention and support to north-eastern states including Sikkim and said that HUDCO’s presence in north- east is negligible. Referring to the migration of people from rural to urban areas shri Oscar Fernandes observed that it is time that we work out a migration policy to address this vital issue.
Among others present on the occasion were Smt. Chitra Chopra, Secretary, Ministry of Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation and Shri P.S. Rana, CMD HUDCO.
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