1,080 EWS flats lying vacant for 7 years

Gurugram: The high demand for financially weak citizens in Gurugram wanting their houses was recently highlighted when there were over 26,000 applications for Prime Minister housing scheme last week. For a city where population is over 20 lakhs, various central and state schemes are being initiated for providing affordable housing.

However, most of these initiatives are not providing the desired results. One such example has been the failure of Aashiana housing scheme at Sector 47 near Sohna road.

Set up in 2011, the housing project was to provide 1080 flats under the EWS category. Yet, in seventh year of its completion, there has not been a single occupant of the flats. The poor condition of the flats is only increasing the maintenance costs of cash strapped Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA).

Moreover, being situated near Sohna road that has emerged one of the prime commercial spots in the national capital region, the property rats have also increased. There is however assurances that are made by the public officials that the flats will be provided at nominal price of Rs three to four lakhs.

According to sources, even though there has been huge demands for the flats, the HUDA officials have not been find the right mechanism to identify the right buyer under the EWS category.

There is concern among the officials that most of them can fake themselves as fake buyers under EWS category, buy the flats and sell them under higher price.

The failure of HUDA in devising the right mechanism has resulted in huge criticism. Gurugram may boast of residential societies that command highest prices in the country but in a city where the population is 25 lakhs and growing, affordable housing is still a dream.

Besides central schemes, the state government is also committed to make affordable housing a reality in the city. To address the challenge the government had brought number of schemes but it has still not worked out.

Among the schemes was to make a housing society on lines of DDA where 25,000 units of flats were to be delivered in places of Sohna, Manesar and Gurugram. However, this plan is still in the works.