Reduce land requirement for townships to 1 lakh sq mt to boost affordable housing: ITPI president NK Patel

This will encourage more developers to launch townships, ITPI president says at a workshop on affordable housing.

Ahmedabad: The state government should reduce the minimum land requirement for developing a township in Ahmedabad from the existing 5 lakh sq mt to 1 lakh sq mt to enable development of more affordable housing units, the Institute of Town Planners, India (ITPI) has recommended.

Demand for affordable houses is on the rise in cities like Ahmedabad due to rapid urbanisation and migration.

However, the supply of affordable homes, especially for the middle-class, is far lower than the demand.

“Large land parcels of 5 lakh sq mt are not easily available in cities. Moreover, few developers can afford to buy such a large tract of land.

The requirement for land for township should be lowered to 1 lakh sq mt, which will lead to the development of more township projects in and around the city, which will also boost development in peripheral areas,” said NK Patel, President ITPI, in his presentation.

He said that amenities such as STP, streetlights, etc., are already provided by township developers, and there will not be any additional financial burden on authorities if smaller townships are allowed.

Patel made the recommendation while addressing a workshop on ‘Affordable Housing: Real-Time Review’ organised by ITPI Gujarat chapter in Ahmedabad on Sunday. Leading town planners, developers, academicians, and students attended the workshop.

In his presentation, the ITPI chief also spoke about other interventions for making houses affordable for more people.

The average price of a middle-income group affordable home of 54 sq mt in Ahmedabad is around Rs. 28.78 lakh, but a 50% reduction in GST and tax rates can bring down prices by 19.5%, additional 0.9 Floor Space Index (FSI) can lower the price by 23%.

“Both interventions can lead to a 28% reduction in price, allowing more middle-class families to achieve their dream of owning a house.

The interventions are also a win-win for the government as its revenues will go up, while builders will be able to build and sell more units,” he illustrated.

CEPT University President Padma Shri Dr. Bimal Patel, the chief guest on the occasion, felicitated NK Patel and lauded his contribution to the field of town planning.

CEPT professor Sejal Patel also made a presentation at the workshop.