Delhi Govt to implement Affordable Rental Housing Complexes

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India has notified changes to the Master Plan of Delhi-2021 for the rollout of Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHCs) scheme. The plan is yet to be implemented.

After widespread reports of reverse migration during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Center established the ARHC programme in 2020, to supply migrant workers with cheap accommodation around the nation. The Memorandum of Agreement between Delhi and the Centre for the execution of the plan has not yet been signed, according to ministry officials.

The two models for putting the ARHC scheme into action are, either the central government rents out apartments built under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and Rajiv Awas Yojana, or allowing government organisations or private organisations to construct rental houses on their land. In a gazette notification published on August 1st, 2022, it was specified that a government or a private organisation would build residences under the ARHC programme on land that is at least 2000 square metres in size. A Floor Area Ratio of 200 will be permitted, and the maximum ground coverage will be 33.3 per cent. The Airports Authority of India and Fire Department must provide their approval before deciding the building’s height.

A senior Delhi Development Authority (DDA) official has said that the central government has decided to allow it on all land use types such as commercial, industrial, residential, semi-public etc. According to the notification, the ARHCs must feature a minimum of 40 residential units (single or double bedrooms) measuring 30 or 60 square metres, as well as dormitories, as well as basic public amenities like water, sewage, commercial centres, etc. The central government has made the decision to provide more floor area ratio (FAR) in order to promote greater private engagement. A maximum cumulative FAR of 50 per cent above the permitted FAR shall be provided, free of charge. The announcement stated that the FAR with incentives may only be used for ARHC construction.

The notification states that urban migrants and the urban poor, including street vendors and rickshaw pullers, may receive ARHC housing units. Other service providers, industrial workers, migratory labourers, market/trade associations, educational or medical institutions, the hospitality industry, long-term tourists/visitors, students, etc. may receive it.

The MPD-2021 amendment will allow building of apartments by private developers, but the Delhi government and the Centre need to quickly assign over 30,000 apartments built under the JNNURM and other central government programmes.

5548 flats constructed under the JNNURM and other central programmes have been transformed into ARHCs in Chandigarh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Jammu and Kashmir, according to information provided to the Lok Sabha by Kaushal Kishore, Minister of state for Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India.