Ghaziabad Development Authority surpasses housing unit target of central govt scheme

The Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA), which was given a target to give approval for at least 13,500 houses for economically backward classes in the financial year 2018-19, has sent project reports for construction of about 19,000 houses.

The houses, to be built under the Centre’s Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna (PMAY), need to be sanctioned by the state government, which has approved at least 15,000 of the project reports forwarded by the Ghaziabad authority.

The authority officials said that of the project reports which have been sent, nearly 11,000 are being developed by the GDA. According to the scheme, the funding for the house is to be borne by the Centre, the state government, as well the respective allottee.

“We are well ahead of this year’s target of 13,500 houses. The authority has been given an overall target of 36,000 housing units under the scheme, which are to be completed by 2022. We have already surpassed this year’s target and construction works are in progress,” Kanchan Verma, authority’s vice chairperson, said.

Officials said that out of the project reports for 19,000 housing units, 4,000 are under process of approval.

“To encourage private players to come forward to develop housing units, the state government is offering a floor area ratio up to a maximum of 3.5, from a minimum of 1.5, for free. Additionally, there are no charges for conversion of agricultural land to residential. The free-of-cost conversion, however, does not include land earmarked as green area, open spaces for facilities such as sewage treatment plant or solid waste management, among many others,” an officer from the authority’s town planning department, not authorised to speak to the media, said.

According to official sources, the authority, as part of the construction of the housing units, will have to bear a burden of nearly ₹750 crore in the next three years.

GDA officials added that they may pass on the burden to its new housing project and may also try to procure free-of-cost land belonging to the gram samaj and or the Ghaziabad municipal corporation.