Summary:
Recession, other impediments to blameKuldip BhatiaLudhiana, September 14Even though the Punjab Government has introduced several housing and affordable housing policies one after the other right from June 2015 when the Modi-1 government had introduced the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna (PMAY) with a credit-linked subsidy scheme (CLSS), the affordable housing sector in the state is yet to make any headway towards achieving its desired objective. Soon after notifying Punjab Shehri Awas Yojna (PSAU) in August 2017, the state government came out with Punjab Affordable Housing Policy in March 2018 in a bid to meet an acute shortage of affordable dwelling units in major towns. However, even after one and a half years of the affordable housing policy taking effect, not even a single affordable housing colony has taken licence in Ludhiana from the Greater Ludhiana Area Development Authority (GLADA) to date. According to details uploaded on the web site of Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), Punjab, only six affordable colonies (two in Banur, one each in Patiala, Mohali, Kharar and Kapurthala) have so far been registered in the state under the provisions of the Punjab Affordable Housing Policy, 2018. Punjab Colonisers and Property Dealers Association secretary GS Lamba feels that in the wake of severe recessionary trends prevailing in the real estate sector, the steps taken by the government to provide relief to realtors and boost affordable housing seemed insufficient..