What is the issue?
- FSG - A social consultancy, recently published its research on urban housing in India.
- It finds that ‘land ownership’ holds the key for millions to access associated social benefits.
Why is Ownership the Key?
- An estimated additional 1.8 million people are homeless in India.
- A quarter of India’s urban population (37 million households) live in slums.
- Many people in slums have little control over the property they live on - which usually is their only asset.
- Therefore, a publicly recognition of ownership becomes necessary for access to many social benefits and formal sector loans.
- Owning land boosts health profiles, educational outcomes and gender equality and the converse is equally true.
- Hence, housing ought to rank higher than education and health in priority and is the first step for providing a decent life & livihood.
- A decent habitat for the poor will not only contribute towards their well-being but also catalyse overall social and economic growth.
What are the challenges for India?
- Slums - An estimated 58% of slum areas have open drainages, 43% transport water from outside, 34% have no public toilets.
- There is an extensive need to repair existing housing stock and enhance essential services as presently they are seriously defecient.
- Growing Demand - India is urbanising fast and around 38% of India (540 million people) will be urbanised by 2025.
- Experts estimate that 18 million households in India are in dire need of better low-income housing.
- All these, when paired with a shrinking supply of land and high construction costs - leads to a growing slum population.
- Relocation - Several attempts to relocate slum dwellers to better housing have failed.
- This is mainly because new sites are usually in the outskirts that hampers access of residents to employment, schools and other amenities.
- Slum-dwellers hence favour upgradation of existing facilities and secure tenancy in-situ (in the same place).
What are the FSG Recommendations for Improved Housing?
- Increasing Legal Supply - Government should create an environment that increases the supply of affordable, legal shelters with tenure security.
- Slum upgradation - Informal settlements that isn’t a hinderance for the larger public need to be upgraded through public services.
- Services such as roads, electricity, water supply and sanitation need to be taken up.
- Such actions are found to create a high level of perceived tenure security without a formal change of legal status.
- This will als0 encouraged local private investments & locality improvisation activities.
- Ownership - There is also a recommendation for providing basic ownership and property rights to traditional dwellers.
- Recognition of ownership eliminates the fear of eviction and incentivises area improvisation by owners themselves.
What are the proposed Ownership Modules?
- Property rights has conventionally meant the right to use, develop and transfer property.
- But FSG advocates a variation for regularised slum property.
- It envisions Property rights for informal housing that guarentee the owner-occupant a heritable & mortgageable document only.
- While securing the property for residential use, it denies the sale or rental rights to the owner.
- Alternatively, giving property rights on time stipulated lease can be considered.
- Also, certain restricted property transfer modules such as only between low-income groups can be considered.
- Restrictions on ownership are mainly intended to prevent misuse and deter prolefereation of slums in future.
Source: Businessline