Four out of every five Mumbaikars cannot afford to buy a house in Mumbai, because of which slums are spreading in the city, said a report issued on Tuesday by nonprofit organisation Praja Foundation.
"The cost of a house is beyond the capacity of 80% of Mumbaikars. They cannot even afford to buy MHADA houses," said Nitai Mehta, Praja's managing trustee. The average cost of a flat in Mumbai is over Rs 2 crore, while it is over Rs. 1 crore in the extended suburbs. Noting that every second Mumbaikar earned Rs 2,40,000 per year on average, Praja's report said the cost of an affordable house should be pegged at five times the annual income of the person.
Because housing is unaffordable, 41.9% of Mumbaikars stay in slums, said the report. It added that nine of the city's 24 municipal wards have every second person staying in a slum. At the household level, out of a total 28 lakh households in the city, 11.36 lakh households are in slums and 15,274 households are homeless.
Besides, 57% households stay in a one-room house. 8% share the room with another family.
The shortage of affordable houses is not being met by the government, says the report. In the past 19 years, the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) has constructed only 1.5 lakh houses. "And, to construct the remaining 11.5 lakh houses (needed), SRA will take another 140 years with the current speed of approval and construction of houses. It shows that the government agencies are totally inept at handling the housing demand in the city," said Mehta.
Mehta said that the government should take help of NGOs to facilitate the construction of houses for the needy. He said that the elected representatives are not keen to resolve the perennial housing issue in city. "In the last five years, the 32 legislators from Mumbai had asked only 5,970 questions on housing related issues-- out of 40,520 questions," he said.
Senior architect and urban planner Shirish Patel said that the state government should focus on inclusive housing. "Years ago the government had decided to use 20% of total plot area for inclusive housing. But no one is serious about the implementation. In Spain, the developers have to keep at least 50% of their total plot for inclusive housing. And in return they get a lot of tax benefits. But in India, no one bothers to provide a roof over the head of the needy," said Patel.
Mehta of Praja said that the NGO will take up the issue with the government and others. "We will have dialogue with various stake holders to find solutions. We will also meet the government authorities," said Mehta.
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