Models of Privatisation in Formal Housing in India: An Appraisal

By : Gursharan Kaur

Page No: 44-56

Abstract
Housing is one of the basic needs of mankind and is recognised as a fundamental right under Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 11(1) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). In India, till the 1990s, the state governments used to provide housing to the population through the establishment of State Housing Boards, Municipal Corporations, and Improvement Trusts at the city level. During 1991, India pursued economic reforms and liberalised various economic sectors, housing was one of them. The National Housing Policy 1992, emphasised the creation of a facilitating environment by the government to increase the growth of housing rather than the building itself. In the light of the National Housing Policy, different state governments framed their policies for involving the private sector in housing. The present paper highlights the models followed by state governments of Haryana, West Bengal, Maharashtra, and Gujarat for involving the private sector in formal housing. The paper further includes a discussion on the procedure laid by state governments for registration as a promoter, the procedure for approval of private housing projects, profit margins, plot sizes, reserved areas for EWS, etc. The comparison of the procedure will help to highlight the positive features of the process that can be adopted by other state governments to make their privatisation model more inclusive, efficient, and transparent.

Author :
Gursharan Kaur : Assistant Professor, Guru Ramdas School of Planning, Guru Nanak Dev University.
 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.32381/NL.2024.56.01.4