NEW DELHI, Nov 30: Industry body ASSOCHAM today called for infrastructure status to affordable housing, saying this will make low-cost housing more affordable, as the sector will become eligible for sops, including tax incentives.
It also urged real estate players to invest in creating an affordable housing market to help ease the supply crunch.
“With India facing a shortage of around 18.78 million homes, the reason behind falling sales is the mismatch between the price range of the housing offered and the type and costs of units demanded,” the chamber said.
According to National Housing Board figures, 10.55 million residences are required for the economically weaker section (EWS) and 7.41 million for lower income group (LIG) section.
It is further estimated that another 15 million households are situated in “unacceptably congested conditions”.
Current demand is in urban and semi-urban areas and needs to be addressed by the real estate players, the chamber said.
At present, builders are mostly offering premium homes, whereas the demand is higher for affordable housing in the Rs 5-25
lakh category.
(UNI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel