Gurugram Town Planning Invites Bids for Affordable Housing

The department of town and country planning (DTCP) has invited fresh applications from builders to develop affordable housing projects on about 3,000 acres. Although the Haryana Affordable Housing Policy was introduced by the state government in 2013, economical houses have been built on only 450 of the 3,500 acres earmarked for the projects. Seven years ago, 80 such affordable housing projects were planned in Gurugram under the new policy. Around 50% of them failed to even take off. Records sourced from the DTCP show that only eight of the 80 projects have been completed till now and granted occupancy certificates. According to the policy, an affordable housing project has to be completed within four years from the date permissions are granted to the developer. Sources said one of the primary reasons for the lukewarm response to the policy was the high cost of land in the sectors where the projects had been planned. Most of these projects are supposed to come up in the residential sectors of New Gurugram and along Golf Course Extension Road. The affordable housing policy has also undergone a change. Earlier, only 15 acres in any residential sector would be available for building economical houses. But after the policy underwent an amendment in 2019, the maximum area that could be utilised in any sector was increased to 30 acres. KM Pandurang, the director of DTCP, said the builders whose applications had been rejected earlier could now apply afresh after sorting out the deficiencies that had led to their rejection. The developers could apply before November 25 for getting the licence to build affordable houses in Gurugram and other towns. “The department will scrutinise the applications and other related documents before giving the approval.