New Delhi: When the pandemic led to a large-scale exodus of migrant workers from cities, the central government reacted in July 2020 by launching a scheme to provide affordable rental housing for the urban poor. But three years later, more than 5,600 low-rent apartments have closed. Prepared, distributed in eight cities.
Affordable Rental Housing Complex (ARHC) Scheme It initially aimed to convert 83,534 flats built under central government-funded schemes to provide housing to the urban poor and migrant workers. However, as per the information currently available on the online dashboard of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, only 5,648 flats have been successfully converted into rental housing.
According to the ministry’s reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on February 2 this year, a total of 4,470 flats had been allotted to the beneficiaries till that time.
The flats built so far are located in Chandigarh, Jammu, Chittorgarh (Rajasthan), Lalkuan and Dehradun (Uttarakhand), and Surat, Ahmedabad and Rajkot (Gujarat).
Notably, while over 73 per cent of the over 83,000 earmarked flats are located in Maharashtra and Delhi, not a single flat has been converted into rental housing so far.
The conversion of slums into flats was initially approved under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) during the tenure of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.
Speaking to ThePrint, a senior official of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs said that 7,413 more flats are likely to be converted into rental housing soon.
He also admitted that the plan has not progressed as expected.
“The idea is to provide a decent living space at affordable rates. But this component of the scheme did not get a good response from the market,” he said.
The ARHC scheme, a sub-scheme under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana- Urban (PMAY-U), is being implemented through two models: Conversion of existing government-funded vacant houses into affordable flats under public-private partnership and construction, operation, and maintenance of ARHCs by private or public entities on their vacant land.
Ministry officials said the second component has received more positive feedback.
Read also: Job Losses, Rent and Migration – What the COVID-19 Crisis Tells Us Migrants Need Housing Security
No progress in Delhi and Maharashtra
Of the 83,534 flats, Maharashtra and Delhi – both which saw large-scale reverse migration during the lockdown – have the largest share at 32,345 and 29,112, respectively.
However, none of these flats have been converted into rental housing.
Delhi and the central government are yet to sign an agreement to convert the existing inventory of flats into rental housing.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a Delhi government official indicated the bureaucratic impasse. According to him, the central government, which is funding the scheme, has made it clear that these flats cannot be used by the Delhi government to provide housing to slum dwellers under its slum rehabilitation scheme.
The Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) under the Government of Delhi is responsible for the rehabilitation of slums located on Delhi Government land.
DUSIB member Bipin Rai said they have agreed to sign an agreement with the central government, requesting the ministry to exempt 18,000 flats and implement the scheme on the remaining houses.
“Out of 18,000 flats, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA, which comes under the central government) has requisitioned 9,000 flats to make transit housing for its slum rehabilitation scheme and we have to rehabilitate slums located on Delhi government land. The remaining 9,000 flats are required for We have already taken money from 9,000 families for rehabilitation. We hope that the matter will be resolved at the earliest.
According to another senior ministry official, the Delhi government is yet to sign an agreement to implement the rental housing scheme.
ThePrint reached the ministry spokesperson over phone and text but has not yet received a response. This report will be updated upon receipt of a response.
In Maharashtra’s case, a senior ministry official said: “The draft request for proposal is being prepared and will be issued soon.”
‘Schemes should be better planned’
The Surat Urban Development Authority (SUDA) was one of the first few government agencies to implement the ARHC scheme in 2020. The authority converted its 393 housing inventory into affordable housing for migrant workers employed in nearby industrial areas.
“The authority has signed a contract with a private player for a period of 25 years. The private company will maintain the complex and also collect rent. The authority will get a revenue of Rs 18 crore in the next 25 years from this residential complex. The plan is going well, as the housing complex is located very close to an industrial area,” said Shalini Agarwal, president of SUDA and commissioner of Surat Municipal Corporation.
Aggarwal said the average monthly rent is Rs 2,000-3,000.
He told ThePrint that the SUDA and the Surat Municipal Corporation will convert an additional 126 and 292 housing units into rental housing, respectively, by the end of the year.
However, activists highlight that rental housing in some cities, including Delhi, is not strategically located near industrial areas. They say this undermines the very purpose of providing convenient housing options for workers.
“If the rental accommodation is close to an industrial area then it can do well, as workers can live near workplaces. But in a place like Delhi, the flats that are to be converted for rental housing are located on the outskirts of the city,” said Shakeel Ahmed, convener of Basti Suraksha Manch, a housing and land rights network.
“Would an employee spend Rs 100 per day commuting between workplace and rented accommodation?” He asked.
Ahmed said that such schemes should be better planned. “The public is suffering because of the standoff between the Delhi government and the Centre,” he said.
Private companies investing in rentals
While the central government is struggling to utilize the existing inventory of flats for rental housing, ministry officials suggested that work is progressing well under the second ARHC model, which will allow companies to build exclusive, close to workplaces. Formally allows rental housing to be built in industrial areas. ,
The senior ministry official cited earlier in this report said that 82,273 units have been approved across 13 locations in Tamil Nadu, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.
Of these, around 48,113 are under construction, according to a senior ministry official.
“Though no new projects are being accepted, we are in the process of evaluating around 70 proposals from various public and private sector companies,” the senior official said.
(Edited by Asawari Singh)